Standing Still
by coreymason
Summary: A crisis brings the team together and challenges them all physically and mentally. When something happens to one of their own they're left dealing with the consequences. A team centric fic.
1. Prologue

NOTE: Thanks to my writing savvy wonderful new beta, Lou. An awesome and intelligent beta. Who could ask for more?

The world of the NCIS OSP came to a crashing halt one Thursday morning when their junior agent walked into the Mission wearing only a pair of boyshort underwear and a white tank top… covered in blood.

Before Kensi Blye walked into the office and turned the team on their head the day had been nothing special. Nate was sitting downstairs at Kensi's desk, cradling a cup of coffee and reading a comic book when Eric walked, or skated in.

"If Hetty catches you, you're dead," the psychologist quipped to the younger man, barely glancing up from his comic.

"She has a conference call this morning with some Spanish general. She'll never know," Eric threw back as he strutted in with the posture of a man confident he was breaking the rules and wouldn't be caught doing it. He smirked at Nate and did some sort of move on his roller blades.

"I think you spoke too soon, Eric," Sam said as he and G walked in. He threw a box of doughnuts on the table for the team to snack on.

Eric pivoted, looking for Hetty and tripped over his own skates. He scowled from the floor as he realized Sam was just messing with him. The three men laughed at their computer tech even as Callen walked over and helped the blond off the floor. Once Eric was back on his feet, Callen handed him a chocolate crème doughnut.

"I believe Sam is correct, Mr. Beal. Rollerblades are for outdoors, not for scuffing up my floors." Hetty had the uncanny ability of always being at the right place at the right time, or wrong time depending on who you were. No one was sure how she knew, but the woman had an eerie sixth sense that creeped out even their former SEAL.

"No, Hetty! I'm sorry. Won't happen again. I promise," Eric said, beginning to sweat and looking nervously around for an out.

"Of course you are dearie. And I thank you in advance for your assistance in cleaning out the wardrobe room this weekend. It hasn't been gone through in months." Hetty smirked to herself as she headed in the direction of her office.

Eric, having exchanged his rollerblades for his customary flip-flops, joined the rest of the men at the table. He wore a resigned look at the prospect of spending his weekend clearing out clothes with his boss. Hetty knew the best punishments. He turned his attention back to his teammates and joined in the current conversation. They spent some time joking around and talking about last night's Lakers game. Callen glanced at the clock and noticed that it read 9:35am.

"Hey. Where's Kensi? It's after nine," he asked.

The four men looked at each other, shrugging, not sure where the female agent was this morning. Hetty must have had the same question as she walked out and looked at her team.

"Has anyone heard from Ms. Blye this morning," Hetty asked, with just a trace of worry in her voice. The life she'd lived meant that even small deviations from her agents' usual routines worried her. They meant trouble, and she didn't like trouble.

"She's not sick?" asked Eric, knowing the answer, but feeling the inexplicable need to speak.

"Kensi would die before she called out sick." Realizing his bad choice of words, Nate, always vigilant towards the team's emotional well-being, told a story to keep the team from focusing on Kensi's whereabouts.

In this job, coming in late could mean anything from a one night stand, to a broken alarm clock, to having been kidnapped and tortured. "Don't you remember the time she was running a fever and had spent a week coughing? We couldn't get her to a doctor. Finally, Sam picked her up, threw her over his shoulder, and he and Callen forced her in the car."

"Oh yeah, she kicked me the entire time," Sam said, laughing at the memory of his teammate and his friend.

"We got her to the doctor and found out she had walking pneumonia. She had the audacity to show up to work the next day. I thought Hetty was going to kill her."

"We all got to spend the weekend babysitting Kensi making sure she didn't attempt to escape."

The team smiled at their recollection of the incredibly stubborn Kensi Blye. Never one to show or admit weakness.

They were still chuckling at their recollection when the subject of their discussion walked into OPS. Wearing a vibrant blue pair of boyshorts. No pants. No shoes. A formally white tank top that was now covered in blood. Blood caked her dark, curly hair. She had nothing else on her but a pair of keys in her hands.

Later, when this was all over and they were left to deal with everything that happened, each member of the team would remember something different.

Eric would remember the lack of dress. Kensi, while never prudish, was uncomfortable showing lots of skin. It wasn't that she didn't love or appreciate her body, but as she had once confided to the tech guru not long after she started and was struggling to fit in, she didn't like the team thinking of her as the girl. Men typically wanted to protect females. She wanted to be their equal, wanted them to trust her with their lives. While they did, and could do so while still looking at her as feminine, she was still self-conscious about her gender. The fact that his friend stood before of all of OPS in her underwear is what affected him the most. Something was terribly wrong.

Sam would remember the noise. The silence as the entire building seemed to stop moving. All he could hear at that moment was Kensi's labored breathing. Everyone just stared. His heart broke for this woman who was his sister. He didn't know why, but he knew this moment would change the team. All of a sudden there was a rush of noise as Hetty dismissed the gawkers, actually screaming at them. He remembered the sound of Nate's coffee mug hitting the floor and shattering into tiny shards as its owner bolted and ran towards Kensi. He remembered the gasp that came from Callen, the scared and questioning "Kensi," that slipped out of Eric, and the quiet desperation emanating from Kensi herself.

Hetty would remember that her gut told her something was off. She had been waiting for a phone conference; not with a Spanish general, but rather someone else. The phone call she had been waiting for never came. She would remember how different the team would have been had she only received that phone call. The woman in front of her would not be standing, covered in blood, if that call had come through. Because of that, Hetty turned her energy and anger into clearing out the hall and screaming at the gawkers. The last thing Kensi would want was her team to see her breaking down, let alone random strangers and co-workers.

Nate would remember the frantic effort to find the source of the bleeding. He was a doctor. A psychologist, yes, but he had gone to med school just like any other doctor. He began moving his hands over her body, searching for what had caused so much blood loss. She shouldn't be standing. He found some scratches and bruises, but no openly bleeding wounds. He stared at her blank face, knowing she was going into shock.

Callen would remember looking at her mismatched eyes and seeing desperation and devastation. It was a look that had graced his own face many times. Seeing it on this woman broke his heart.

Kensi would only remember the blood.


	2. Chapter 2

NOTE: Some more edits from my awesome beta Loopylou. Very grateful for all the assistance. I added some things as well. So, some changes to be had.

That moment when the team first saw Kensi was something that would always stay with them. It had been like when a silence falls over the forest before the sound and movement comes crashing back. For an outsider looking in they would only see chaos; however, the chaos was a masterfully controlled dance. Everyone knew their moves and their parts, even in this unplanned, unpleasant, unfathomable moment.

Nate and Callen reached her first, both reaching out to her, searching for a wound. Their hands betraying their mindset, searching for something that might explain the devastation in front of them.

Nate worked his hands over Kensi clinically and methodically, the doctor and the psychologist in him kicking in. He was gentle but firm, trying not to cause any more cracks in her psyche. Callen's hands were shaking slightly, not visible to anyone else but someone who knew the man intimately, a contradiction to his seemingly calm face. Unlike Nate, he was more action oriented. He needed a problem to fix. The blank, catatonic state of his favorite agent was something he didn't know how to fix.

"The blood isn't hers," Callen finally stated, voice filled with frustration. Speaking for no reason other than to alleviate some of the panic overtaking the team. They had just lost Dom, they could not lose another agent. Not her. Especially not her.

Sam nodded in relief as he walked up and gently took the keys hanging from Kensi's hands. She didn't even flinch. He shuddered at the sight. It hurt him to look at her, so he clenched his hands around the keys and headed for the door.

"I'm going to check the car," he aimed his comment at Nate and Callen, his eyes conveying the message, take care of her, make sure she's alright. The men responded with only a half-hearted nod because their attention on the woman in front of them.

In the background, Hetty was on the phone, dealing with the phone call she had been waiting for, worrying about, out of her mind. At that moment, taking care of her junior agent was her primary focus. The fact that the two things could be related never even crossed her mind.

Eric stood in silence. Fidgeting. He was useless. He had nothing to do except watch Kensi, only this wasn't Kensi. This was something, someone, else. Covered in blood that thankfully was not hers. He hadn't realized he had spoken until Callen looked at him with a combination of frustration and pity.

"Whose blood is it?"

The answer hung in the air.

Nate went into psychologist mode once he realized that there was no immediate physical problem. Her skin was cold and clammy. Her eyes were unfocused. And her eyes, normally mismatched, were now the same dark brown because her pupils were dilated. She was not responding to any of them.

"Kensi!" Callen called, rubbing her hand briskly, trying to get a response.

He was amazed she had driven here. But on second thought, this place was a home and a safe haven for all of them. In a stressful situation, it would have been a basic instinct to seek safety and solace. The Mission, and the people inside, would provide both of those things.

He needed her to answer him before he could start helping. He lowered his voice, gentling it into a soothing melodic tone. "Kensi, I need you to look at me."

If she had not been catatonic, she would have been irritated he was using this voice on her, treating her like a victim, but right now, it didn't seem to register with her.

"Kensi. Hey Kenz, can you look at me?"

Callen made a motion to grab her attention, but was stopped when Nate put out a hand. It was not often the team's leader would turn over authority the operational psychologist, but Nate had been trained to deal with situations just like this. G would not endanger Kenz and the scruffy faced man in front of him knew what he was doing.

"Too many people can be a distraction. We need her to focus on one thing right now," he said as an explanation. In another situation, Nate would be nervous about retribution for usurping Callen's authority, but this was his area of expertise, he knew what she needed.

G sighed in frustration, not at Nate, but the situation. He took a step back and joined Eric, who was looking traumatized himself. Callen rubbed the blond techie's shoulder, trying to distract and comfort him. As he walked Eric to the table, he kept his attention half on the doctor and the woman.

"Kensi, Can you look at me? It's Nate. You're home, Kenz. You're, ok Kenz. I'm here. G, Sam, Hetty, Eric, we're all here, Kenz," he said in the voice he used for those deeply traumatized. He continued to use her name, hoping that something would catch and she her psyche would come out of hiding and join the rest of her body.

"Hey Kenz. Can you hear me? You're home. You're safe, Kensi. It's Nate, and I promise you you're safe here. Can you look at me, Kenz?" Whether it was the continuous reassurances that she was ok, or holding and squeezing her hand with one hand as the other rubbed gentle circles on his back, he wasn't sure. But after twenty minutes that felt like twenty hours, they finally got the woman to make eye contact.

"Nate?" she half-whispered, half-moaned, obviously in pain.

"Hey there," he whispered, smiling at her, despite the fact that he wanted to fall against the wall and cry.

"Cold," she whispered.

Hetty returned from her office and took over. "Come, Kensi. We'll get you a hot shower, and get you cleaned up, and some clean clothes." Had she been more cognizant she would have been worried by Hetty's use of her first name.

Kensi could only shake her head feverishly in the affirmative, looking like she was near tears. Hetty gave Nate a look that assured him she knew what she was doing and deterred him from speaking. He nodded, knowing that Hetty would never endanger any of them.

Hetty had more on her mind than just getting the young woman cleaned up. She also wanted to make sure the rest of the team wasn't around for what she was about to do. In the mist of the chaos, no one had thought to photograph the woman or collect evidence from her body. They were worried about Kensi. Hetty was too. But this was something that still had to be done and she thought the neither the junior agent nor her colleagues/friends would appreciate seeing the young woman as a victim.

With that Hetty reluctantly began photographing the younger woman. At this moment the operational manager was almost grateful that the woman had slipped back into a catatonic state. Almost.

As Hetty Lange helped her young protégé get undressed and got her in the almost scalding hot water she felt something break inside her. While Ms. Blye had never been innocent, at least not in the way Eric was innocent, she had a vibrancy and youth to her. She knew that after today, whatever had happened, she would be changed forever. Hetty had been like the younger woman. She remembered the moment she lost that, standing over the dead body of the only man she would ever give her heart to. But she couldn't focus on the past, she had to focus on the child in front of her. One of five individuals she care for and protected as if they were her children.

Hetty wanted to cry as she stared at the naked body of Kensi Blye. Covered in so much blood. Whomever the blood belonged to was no longer living. Hetty could feel that in her gut. There was simply too much of it to be from a minor wound.

As she cleaned Kensi off, telling her how she had first met James Dean, it took every ounce of self-control not to tear up. This job was weighing on her. It was moments like these that she wanted to retire and move to Florida. Get a nice condo. Sip whiskey sours on a balcony overlooking the sea. Then she looked at her agent, the blood almost gone, but the disturbance, fear, and agony still in her eyes. Those were the reasons why she stayed. That and she was about to do something that would possibly cost her this job. But it had to be done. She took the bloody clothes and the camera, all the evidence and she hid it. At this moment, knowing that Kensi was not injured, she was the only member of the team to realize that Kensi might be both a perpetrator and a victim. She was going to protect the younger woman and keep the evidence hidden until they knew for sure. In all honesty, she knew that Nate, Eric, Sam, and Callen would all do the same. She preferred that it was only her career in jeopardy at this moment.

As Hetty was tending to their junior agent, the men were sitting and staring into space. Sam came back in, a frown on his face.

"What'd you find?"

"Nothing. But that's not her car."

"Whose is it?" G asked.

"Can't tell. Looks like a rental though. It's clean. Too clean. It's a 2007 Impala, but we're talking nothing. No wrappers, no dirt. No chachkis. No fuzzy dice."

Eric grabbed Sam's laptop and began typing furiously. He was relieved. This he knew. He could be of use here. He could do something. "What's the license plate?"

Sam rattled off some numbers as the senior agents and Nate crowded around Eric, waiting for some information that would give them a lead to track down or a body to beat, preferably the latter.

All men stared in disbelief at the name that popped up on the screen as having rented the car. It said G. Callen.

The man in question muttered, "What the fuck happened?"

They didn't hear the two woman approach the table. Kensi's quiet, firmly spoken words cut through them all like a knife. "I killed Renko."


	3. Chapter 3

NOTE: Thanks for everyone for reviewing and commenting. It's always appreciated. Thanks once again to LoopyLou for her great beta skills. I hope you all like this chapter More action coming soon!

"I killed Renko."

The words hung in the now-empty room. No one moved. It seemed as if no one in the room even breathed. Instead, five pairs of eyes studied Kensi. No one knew what to do or what to say.

"I killed Renko. I killed Renko," Kensi repeated for the first time realizing the meaning of those words. She had killed a colleague and a friend. Two large, mismatched eyes scanned her friends, desperately looking for someone to make sense of what she had just said. All she saw was shock and confusion.

Her knees weakened suddenly. She swayed, overcome with emotion, the meaning of her actions and her words dragging her down to the floor. She had killed a NCIS member, a teammate, a friend. How was this possible?

Callen and Sam caught hold of her arms as her knees gave way, catching her before she could crash into the cold tile floor. She leaned heavily on them as they lowered her to the floor and sat down next to her.

"Kensi, what the hell happened out there?" Sam asked gently and quietly, looking at this woman he saw as a sister with worry and fear at her response.

"I killed Renko. There was so much blood. The blood was everywhere. I killed him. I had his blood in my hair, in my fingernails." Her voice was barely above a whisper.

She stretched her hands out, nails up, peering at them. Her shower meant that they were clean. Her mind insisted that she could still see the blood. It broke something in her. Once again, she stared up at him with one light brown and one dark brown eye. They were empty, stripped bare of everything but guilt and pain.

"Guys," Nate said quietly, gathering the group's attention and signaling that they should speak out of earshot of the young woman. Sam and Callen both reluctantly stood up. Sam stroked her hair affectionately.

"We'll be right back, Kensi," Sam said as he started to walk away.

Callen said nothing, just kept throwing worried glances her way. Harshly leashed anger burned in his gut. Nate opened his mouth to speak. The look on the psychologist's face broke the leash on his anger.

"What? Why can't we speak in front of her? You're treating Kensi like a victim!" Callen gritted out between closed teeth, trying to keep his voice down.

Nate, knowing that Callen needed to vent his feelings, tactfully did not point out that he also was treating Kensi like a victim.

"G," their operational psychologist stated, uncharacteristically using his first initial, "right now, she is a victim. Something happened to her. She's obviously seriously traumatized. She's had some sort of break. Knowing how tough Kensi is, whatever happened was bad. Her psyche has gone into hiding. I don't even want to imagine what happened to cause this in her." He stopped and took a breath, shuddering. "But she is a victim. We need to treat her like one."

Callen closed his eyes and looked away, knowing that it was true. It just hurt to believe it.

"Right now, she's also identifying herself as a perp. What are we going to do?" the psychologist said, trying to bring the team into focus.

"We're not turning her in!" Eric yelled, getting out of his chair and advancing towards Nate.

"Eric," Sam demanded tiredly.

The one word stopped Eric in his tracks. He sat back down with a thump.

"Nate's not saying we're turning Kensi in. But we do have to decide how we're going to protect her," Sam said and threw a worried glance at Kensi. Apart from wrapping her arms around her knees, she hadn't moved an inch.

All eyes instinctively turned to Hetty.

"I will stay with Miss Blye. Eric will try to pull up all of Kensi's and Renko's recent phone records and any traffic videos near her apartment to see what Agent Renko was doing in the area. Eric, also find out why that car is in Callen's name. Mr. Callen and Mr. Hanna will head towards her apartment and find out what happened. Given her state of undress I am assuming she was at her home. I want you to take Nate with you. Let him look around and see if he can find a sense of what occurred."

"Maybe she was at Renko's apartment," Callen suggested, his stomach turning at the thought.

"It's Kenz. She could get any guy on the planet; no way would she let Renko take her home. He's made passes before and she always gets irritated by it. I don't think anything has changed," Eric added from his seat on the sofa.

His fingers flew over his laptop keyboard. He had already gained access to the cameras and was scanning video.

"He made passes at her?" Sam questioned, his anger at the dead agent building..

"Why didn't she say something?" asked Callen.

"She hates you guys thinking of her as the girl. And both of you would probably kill him. While Sam is an equal opportunist smotherer, she knows you both are protective of her and she wants you guys to see her as an equal, not a little sister."

"She's both," Sam said matter-of-factly. "But let's get going."

With that, he threw the keys towards G, for once appreciating his best friend's need for speed. As he headed towards the door, he stopped and stroked her hair, while Nate whispered to her it was going to be okay and Callen planted a tender kiss on her forehead. 

When the men stepped out of the car in front of Kensi's apartment, there was a swarm of police cars. None of them were surprised. But they had been secretly hoping to keep this quiet just a bit longer.

They walked into the now cordoned-off apartment, ignoring the protests of LAPD officers and just flashing their badges in response. Even the normally awkward Nate lost the gawky and lanky vibe and walked in with a determination and purpose.

They finally were stopped right in front of Kensi's door by a pudgy, balding police chief.

"How can I help you boys?" asked the pencil pusher with condescension in his voice.

"The vic is an NCIS agent. Our case."

"And how would you know there is an agent in there?" the officer asked.

Sam and Callen hesitated for a moment, waiting for instincts to come in and a reasonable lie to pop in to their head but were saved the trouble.

"I called them."

Sam had never been so happy to see Marty Deeks.

The chief gave Deeks a look that said that trouble was headed his was because of this perceived treachery. Callen gave Deeks a pat and a look that conveyed everything.

The LAPD officer and NCIS liaison motioned the gentlemen to enter the apartment. No one could even speak as they were all taken aback by the copious amounts of blood coating the apartment. The walls. Floors. Furniture. Everything was covered.

Deeks finally broke the silence.

"Is Kensi okay? They said the two bodies were male. I didn't tell them who lived here. I don't know what went down but I figured I would buy us some time."

No one even corrected Deeks on his inclusion of himself in the team. If he was putting his job on the line for the team, then he was definitely "one of them."

"Thanks, Deeks. Kensi's fine. She's back at OPS. But what do you mean the two bodies were male? I thought Renko was the only victim?" Sam asking the question also coursing through Nate and Callen's heads.

"Renko is the victim?"

While Deeks hadn't known the man well, he knew who he was and had the pleasure, or displeasure, of working with him on LAPD cases occasionally.

"Keep your voice down," Callen whispered harshly.

"Um, we found a guy in the kitchen with a gun. I guess that was Renko. I didn't get a good glance before they were taken down to the morgue. The other guy was a Hispanic, found in his boxers. It looks like he was coming out of the bedroom when he was shot. No weapons. No signs of struggle," the liaison explained, showing them the marker where the body was found.

"They know a third party was involved. The apartment is listed under Fern Blye. I figured it was Kensi when I heard the call come in so I made my way down here, but they don't know that yet. I figure you got about two days until they catch on, three if they're accidentally tipped off in the wrong direction."

"Agents never keep things under their own names. It's dangerous, should an assignment go bad or someone follows them home," Nate offered as an explanation.

"We appreciate your help, man." Sam patted Deeks on the back.

"So, it looks like Fern was having a sleepover with the first vic, but what was Renko doing here?"

"That's a really damn good question. I hope Eric found something."

Inside Kensi's mind she was processing and trying to make sense of what happened. She remembered sex. Screaming. Confusion. Blood. Lots of blood. She remembered looking at Renko as he stared at her. Guilt and hesitancy on his face for only the briefest moment before the mask came back into place, his body tense, and he raised his gun to shoot her. He was dead before you could say boo. Killed at point blank range. Kensi's hand shook slightly as she hit him in the carotid artery, causing his blood to spurt out all over her. With each beat of his heart blood spewed out onto her semi-naked body. Inside her head, Kensi Blye grew pissed. She hadn't killed a sometimes teammate and always friend, she had killed a traitor. Somewhere her psyche rejoined her body. She stood up, pushing aside the victimization and regained her spirit and fighting stance and dignity. She became Kensi Blye once more.

"Eric."

The towheaded techie physically jumped out of his chair when he saw that Kensi had entered the room. Even Hetty looked in shock.

"Call the guys. I have something to say."

The determination in her eyes brokered no discussion. With that, Hetty let herself breathe. She could deal with anger; it was the broken down and battered souls that made this job too much.

Eric dialed Callen's number. The phone only rang twice before Callen's worried voice filled the eagle's nest.

"Is she okay?"

"_She__'__s_ fine. Put me on speaker."

"Kensi?" Callen said in disbelief. Relief coursing through his body.

"Speaker."

"Yes ma'am!" he happily obliged his favorite agent.

"Everyone here?"

Nate and Sam voiced their consent and what sounded like Deeks.

"I killed Renko but he tried to kill me first. He killed that man. He turned traitor." Disgust oozed from her voice.

"What?" came the many voices of the team.

Before Kensi could reply Hetty stepped in.

"I need you all back here. I have something I need to tell you. I was waiting for a call today and after what happened at Kensi's apartment, I forgot about the call. But I think I just received my answer."


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Thank you so much for such LOVELY feedback. I am SOOOO SORRY for taking so long to update. I got a second job as an adjunct and it's been taking up quite a bit of my time the last few weeks getting ready. I would like to give a LOVELY HUGE thank you to my amazing beta Lou. Like any great beta, Lou makes sure I sound much better than I actually am Hope you enjoy. A lot of action next chapter!

To save their trip from being in vain, Callen asked Deeks if he could stay to process the scene and see if he could get an ID on the second victim.

"Deeks, send the pictures to Eric. Then get over to OPS." 

The grungy looking undercover LAPD officer stared at the NCIS team leader, confusion in his eyes. 

"We need one of our guys here. You know what to look for." 

"Alright, man," The undercover officer replied, the confusion in his eyes turning to pride at being included. "Take care of Kensi." 

"Always," Sam stated with a look that spoke of how much they appreciated the LAPD officer's assistance.

The car ride back to OPS was tense. Sam and G both looked like they needed some ass to kick and frankly, the pacifist Nate, would not mind joining in.

"He was one of us," commented Sam, finally breaking the tension-filled silence.

"Was, being the operative word. Why was he at Kensi's?"

Nate frowned. "I think the real question is why would he try to kill Kensi?" 

"You're the Doc, you tell me."

"Every agent gets thoroughly vetted. Tons of background checks. It's not an easy process. Hell, Dom almost didn't make it because of a war protest he attended in college. Hetty had to fight for Kenz because of a couple of trespassing charges she had when she was 14."

"Yeah, but there are ways around that. Documents can be faked," Callen added.

Sam ran his hands over his face, and sighed. The others turned their attention to him. Callen was team leader, but the training of new agents was Sam's job, and one he took seriously. Kensi had been a born operator who knew what she was doing. After her, there had been a slew of agents who just had not cut it. In reality, he shouldn't have kept Dom either. The younger man had been far too green but his courage, determination, tech skills, and refusal to fail had helped him worm his was into the team. Now the woman who had become his sister was in trouble. He had to find strength to deal with this. 

"Sam…" Nate prompted.

"Has anyone considered that maybe he really didn't try to kill Kensi?" He paused and then continued quickly, sensing the other's anger and confusion.

"I'm not saying she's lying. But she was catatonic. Something happened inside her. Things could be distorted. If this were any other witness, we wouldn't accept her testimony. How do we know she's not confused?"

"She's not any other witness and we are not going to treat her like any other witness. _She_ is Kensi. _Our_ Kensi."

Nate opened his mouth to recognize the validity of Sam's statement but decided against it. Sam did not need back up and at this moment and Callen did not need to be contradicted. Part of working along side of them was knowing who needed what and how to react. At this moment, Callen needed to know that he could still protect his friend.

They passed the rest of the car ride in tense silence, each man lost in deep thoughts. Nate was already wondering what would be required to bring the group back to normal, whatever that was. Sam sat contemplating where he would find the strength to get through another personal devastation for a member of this team. Callen thought only of vengeance. 

Kensi slouched on a chair, tapping her feet in agitation and nervousness. Hetty sat at her desk on a phone conference with Director Vance but her eyes had not left the brunette. Kensi sniffed, thinking about how this was the end of a career she loved, she lived for. In addition, she would lose the only family she had left. Eric, who was currently running searches to find the second vic's identity, kept stopping every few seconds to stare at her. He probably saw her as a murderer. Eric was a pacifist and had a strict non-violence policy. He had even refused Sam's many attempts to train him how to use a gun for self-protection. There was no way he would forgive her for killing a fellow teammate, even if that teammate had it coming. 

Kensi would have continued the self-destructive spiral of thoughts if it hadn't been for feeling a pair of arms wrap her in a hug. She looked up, surprised to see Eric's face. 

"I'm glad you're okay."

He smiled at her and turned his attention to somewhere over her left shoulder. With a gasp of surprise, she quickly found herself in the strong arms of G Callen. She knew that scent of aftershave and something decidedly manly anywhere. He spun her around so he could look at her. Callen, a man of few words, kissed her forehead and drew her into another hug. 

"G, don't suffocate her before I get a chance," came the deep and unmistakable voice of Sam Hanna.

With that, Kensi Blye once more found the air being squeezed out of her small frame, this time by the ex-Seal. He, too, placed a kiss on her forehead before stepping back and letting Nate have his turn. She was pleasantly surprised that Nate didn't even stop and have a mental debate about invasion of personal space or stutter something no one understood; he just enveloped her in his strong arms and placed a kiss on her forehead too.

He stepped back, letting his training take over for a second, and ran his eyes over her in a quick check.

Usually, the open concern would have annoyed her. For now, she was glad to see their faces. Standing face to face with a teammate with a gun to her head earlier today she had questioned whether she would ever see their faces again. She rewarded them with that huge Kensi Blye smile.

Hetty purposefully cleared her throat, cutting the moment short. The operations manager would have preferred to let them have this moment, they deserved it, but there was someone out there targeting her team and she had a lot to tell them. No words were needed. They all stood up and followed her upstairs, five pairs of eyes giving her their undivided attention.

"I had been waiting for a call today. It had come to the Director's attention that there was a leak coming from this office. Recently, a terrorist cell was made. They had information that only individuals in this office would know. Countless targets we have been watching have been compromised." She paused, and Callen used the opportunity to ask the important question.

"Why didn't you say anything before now?"

"Because, Mr. Callen, the names were traced back to members of this office. More often than not, any evidence we found led back to a G Callen, Sam Hanna, Kensi Blye, Nathaniel Getz, Eric Beal, Mike Renko, and even a Martin Deeks occasionally. You were all suspects." 

"But you know we would never do that," Eric said, shocked that his name had been mentioned. 

"Of course I did, Eric; however, if I told you I would have compromised the investigation and I was positive that you all would come out clean. I was wrong." 

The tension was palpable. "Yesterday, our leak finally made a mistake. He took out a car in Mr. Callen's name. I was able to get some video footage. Miss Scuito was kind enough to examine it. It was Mr. Renko. I suspected it was him, but had no hard evidence. Miss Scuito did not call until after this morning's incident."

Kensi blushed as all members of the team gave her a concerned look before turning their attention back to Hetty. 

"Ok, so Renko not only looks like a rat, he is…was one. So what does this mean? We caught the bad guy, right?" Sam asked.

"So Renko is a rat, but why kill Kensi, specifically? He always said she was the smallest, but the meanest. It would be dangerous to try and kill a very well trained agent," Callen said. "Something doesn't add up."

"Kensi, would you mind telling us what happened this morning?" Nate asked eyeing the woman with concern trying to gauge her mental wellbeing at this point.

She fidgeted in her seat. 

"I went to a bar last night and met a guy." 

"Who was this guy?" Sam could not hide the big brother concern from his voice. 

Kensi's normally olive skin tone turned pink as the gentlemen in the room glared at this unknown and decidedly dead man. Before she opened her mouth to remind them they all were guilty of the occasional lapse in judgment, Eric stepped in for his friend. Despite his carefree surfer attitude, he often was adroit enough to step in and save a teammate from embarrassing moments.

"Deeks sent me photos of the guy. I ran some identification searches; our second victim is Chance Rivera, a 27 year old Marine Captain."

"You took home a guy named Chance?" Nate questioned, voice filled with disbelief.

"Yes. How did Deeks get involved?"

"He heard that there was double homicide at _Fern_'s house and ran interference with us so we had time to do some investigation. Please tell me he didn't use some cheesy pickup line like, 'take a Chance on me.'" The redness that had finally faded had made its way back up to her ears. 

"So. I don't think that's a bad pickup line."

"People, can we please get back to the topic at hand?" Hetty normally would have been much harsher on her bickering brood but they needed the banter. Once the five pairs of eyes looked at her in contrition, their leader continued.

"Miss Blye, I assumed your gentleman friend stayed the night. What happened next?" Hetty glossed over Kensi's sexual encounter as much for the men's well being as for her junior agent's. The four men were fiercely and often annoyingly protective of their female agent. The less attention brought to her sexual experiences the better.

"When I woke up, Chance wanted to take a shower. I directed him to the bathroom. I was looking for clothes for work when I heard gunfire. I grabbed my gun and headed to the living room. Chance was bleeding out on the floor. Renko was standing there. He looked confused. I thought you guys sent him and that Chance was sent to kill me. But he raised his gun at me. Then he gave a nasty smile. I don't even remember shooting him. There was lots of blood. It was everywhere. I knew the neighbors would have heard. I panicked. I thought if he had tried to kill me maybe he had already hurt one of you. I didn't even think about my phone or anything. I was afraid he had done something to my car so I grabbed his keys and drove here. I know I should have stayed at the scene but I needed to know you guys were okay."

She scanned their faces, seeing understanding reflected back in every pair of eyes.

"You're lucky he didn't kill you, too. You did the right thing, you protected yourself," Sam rasped, looking decidedly emotional. "And after this is over we'll talk about the importance of not bringing strange men to your home. It's a liability." Kensi knew this message was as much about protecting her from strange men as it was safety.

"Nate, why do you think he would do this?"

"I don't know. I've had to do psychological observations and analyses on every member of OPS, Renko included and this doesn't fit his psychological profile. Something serious has had to change. No one could fake this behavior. Kensi said he looked confused at first. That's not someone who is completely confident in their behavior. He used all our identities. This suggests that he wanted to get caught. He had to know someone would have caught on and we all would be scrutinized. He had to know we all would have been investigated. It is almost like he wanted to be caught. Eric, can you see if you can track his whereabouts for the past few days? Maybe we can see what triggered his traitorous behavior and why he specifically went after Kensi."

The phone rang, preventing the team from coming up with an action plan.

"It's Deeks," Eric announced before picking up the phone.

"Fern baby, you know how to bring the drama. I got two black SUVs following me since I left Kensi's. They both have some big guys in some big black shades. I'm trying to stay on crowded roadways, but I think I'm going to need some help. They're trying to force me off the Santa Monica."

"Eric's tracking your GPS, we'll be there in fifteen. Try heading towards the Mission and we'll make it ten. Stay on the line with Hetty. She and Nate will debrief you and get you up to speed. Sam, now it's time to put all that useless highway knowledge to some use," Callen ordered.

Eric began tracking Deeks' car via Los Angeles' traffic cameras. Hetty and Nate began filling in Deeks as he also told them what he learned from the crime scene. Kensi smiled silently as they treated her like an agent rather than a victim. Even in this complete chaos, all of these separate individuals, these separate lives, knew the complicated roles they all had to play. Like some complicated play, each player knew their role and their cues. The question left unanswered was whether this play would be a tragedy or not.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: Thanks for being super patient with me. I've been traveling or work and this is the first time I have had to catch up. Thanks to Lou who is such a great beta for keeping it real and keeping me balanced. Hope you guys enjoy!

As Eric tracked Sam's car he came alive. Watching him, Nate let out a relieved breath. He had been worried about their tech specialist. Eric had been wavering back and forth between stoicism and emotional since Kensi's entrance had turned the Mission on its head. While the tow-headed younger man was emotional and caring by nature, he often tried to hide his feelings to blend in with his emotionally stunted friends and colleagues. Looking at him, Nate was relieved that Eric was able to do something and kept active within his element.

Eric's eyes fixed on a screen, flickering from side to side as he tracked two fast-moving cars. He called out directions to the drivers, scarcely pausing to draw breath. Letting the younger man shine made him aware how integral he was to the team.

The psychologist's musings stopped short when something popped into his head.

"Hetty?"

The operations manager looked at him, annoyed he was taking her attention away from tracking her agents' progress. Dread quickly replaced the annoyance when Nate rubbed his chin, a telltale sign of his agitation.

"Was Deeks' name ever mentioned on any of the sabotages? Any car or hotel or name left? Anything?"

Eric didn't give her chance to respond. "Martin Beau Deeks got a plane ticket to Nigeria and disappeared. Two days later, a suspected terrorist training cell our government had been watching in Nigeria disappeared off the radar. The cell split in different directions before anyone could move in and capture them or retrieve any meaningful intel, for that matter."

"Are you suggesting Mr. Deeks is a traitor as well?" Hetty asked. She paced a few steps, the nervousness in her stomach growing.

"Eric, what's the date on the plane ticket?"

"April eighteenth."

Catching on to where Nate was going, he did a quick fact check. "On April eighteenth, he was working the case with us, the one with the socialite Aubrey Darva."

"Mr. Getz, please get to the point."

"Someone is trying to kill our agents. They know Deeks is involved with us." He paused, considering his next words carefully. He let out a slow breath before speaking again. "The best way to lure them out is to put one of our own in danger. "

Comprehension dawned on them as dread and fear settled into the eagle's nest.

"It's a set-up! Eric, have them split up, now!" roared Hetty.

"Guys, it's a trap. You have to get the hell out of there. Split up!"

"No shit, Eric. It's a little too late for that."

The comm link cut off but not before the sounds of gunfire and Sam's voice yelling for someone to get down were heard.

As Sam was navigating the complicated and heavily trafficked LA freeways he was thankful for the moment of peace. He loved his team, maybe even more than his wife because they understood. Nevertheless, at this moment he needed peace. Dom had been dead less than three months. It had only been one month since they dealt with G's incident and OPS going dark for a time. Kensi almost being killed at Renko's hands... It was too much. He was the strength of the team, the arms and back. Hetty was the heart. Nate the mind. Eric the eyes. Kensi the spirit. Callen the soul. Each piece was necessary. However, sometimes even Atlas felt like shrugging. It was a lot to bear the weight of the team on his back.

Peering into the rearview mirror he noticed Kensi's mismatched eyes warring between anger, sadness, frustration, relief, not able to decide what she was feeling. He opened his mouth to speak but was amused when he heard G voice his own sentiments.

"None of this your fault."

She looked up briefly, mouth opened as if she was going to comment but closed her mouth and stared at her hands.

"He was innocent."

"So were you."

"He was one of us."

"Obviously not," Sam spat, not bothering to hide the contempt in his voice.

"No, he was one of us. Something happened. Did you know he sent flowers to Dom's funeral? He sent food to the family. He even visited the grave. That's not a cold-hearted killer. Something happened."

Callen hesitated before responding. Her response produced a few thoughts. How had she known any of this information? He was saddened by her struggle to retain some innocence, to still believe that he hadn't left her and the team like every other person in her life had.

"Kenz, how do you know it was Renko?"

"Dom's mom. Since I was his partner she wanted to speak to me; I think she needed some reassurance her son was a hero. She told me about this man who had come to pay respects and bring food to the family. She said the man's name was Michael. She described him. It was Renko. He filled in quite a bit while you were recovering"

"But by that point he was already involved with sabotage and disseminating information," Sam joined in as the voice of rationality.

"He knows where we all live. Our schedules. Our weaknesses. He could have taken all of us out by now. Why prolong it?"

"Torture? The pain of losing our jobs, having us question each other and lose trust in the team? It could have killed our dynamic," Callen offered.

"Yeah, but it didn't. Today was the first time that anyone of us was targeted or had even heard about this. He would have known if our team dynamic was wrong. He worked a case with us right after Dom died."

The truth of the young woman's words hung in the air and everyone settled back to their private turmoil.

Sam glanced in the rearview mirror to check on Kensi again. The sight of two black, unmarked SUVs tailing them distracted him. Of course this couldn't be easy.

"Heads up, we got two cars trailing us, three cars away. One coming up from each side."

"Fuck, just what we need," Kensi moaned, voicing everyone's thoughts.

Sam sped up and took a left to get them off the La Hacienda Freeway. They were just two miles from Deeks. He needed their back up. Four agents in a fight were better than one. And a fight was coming.

The change in speed let the other drivers know that they had been made. The black SUVs sped up, almost catching Sam's Tahoe.

"Hang on!" Sam yelled as he yanked the Tahoe into a tight left hand turn. The chase car followed him. Sam shook his head, driving past the exit ramp before slamming his brakes and reversing to make the turn.

The chase cars sped past, drivers not ready for such a blatantly dangerous move.

"I bought us five minutes tops. Keep your eyes peeled. We should be hitting Deeks any minute."

"I don't think you'll have to wait long."

Callen was right. They didn't have to wait long. Deeks' slammed into the Tahoe, t-boning them on the driver's side. The airbags exploded as the cars slid across the road, coming to a rocking halt just short of the crash barriers.

Kensi rubbed her neck, biting back a moan of pain. Callen twisted in his seat, hissing at his cuts and bruises. Sam coughed, pressing one hand against his bleeding nose.

"Everyone okay?" Callen asked.

They had little chance to assess injuries as they realized their accident wasn't a result of the Deeks' bad driving but a result of the cars chasing him.

At this moment Eric's voice filled everyone's ears.

"Guys, it's a trap. You have to get the hell out of there. They were trying to lure you out of there. Split up!"

Callen responded, annoyance filling his voice. "No shit, Eric. It's a little too late for that."

As soon as the words made it out of his mouth, the sound of gunfire erupted around. Deeks slumped over in his car, clumsily looking for a gun. The three agents climbed out of their smashed car, guns already un-holstered.

"Get down!" Sam yelled.

The three NCIS agents dropped to the floor, but Sam's words were meant for the obviously injured LAPD officer. His warning was perfectly timed. The young man dropped to the car's floor as a spray of bullets busted through the car windows, where his head would have been.

Callen and Sam traded shots with the four chase cars. Kensi used the cover to pry Deeks' door open enough to assist the blond out.

"You good?" she asked, giving him a once over. He would live. He looked more dazed than anything.

"Told you I would be back, Fern. I gotta tell you Miss Blye, you know how to throw a welcome home party."

"What can I say? What's a party without a shot or two?"

"I prefer my shots to have alcohol as opposed to gun powder, but whatever floats your boat."

"Children, do you think you could pretend to be agents for a few minutes so we can get the hell out of here?"

G laughed at his partner's admonishment even as he continued to return shots to the clichédly dressed bad guys across the street.

Muffled "sorry's" came from behind him as both Kensi and Deeks joined in the attack. It was starting to look hopeless when the sounds of nearby police sirens cut through the gun volley.

The men in black looked at each other before one of them picked up his phone and yelled something. As one, they all got back into their cars and took off in a cloud of burning rubber.

"Well that was anti-climatic," Deeks mumbled.

Sam shook his head. "No, it was lucky," he grumbled.

"Sam's just cranky because he broke that pretty little nose of his," Callen teased.

A realization popped into G's head though. The playful, relieved banter quickly replaced by anxiety.

"We have to get the hell out of here, too."

"Why?" asked Kensi.

"Because, you are a suspect of a double homicide. We can't be caught here."

"The car still works!" Deeks yelled as he revved the engine of Sam's Tahoe and backed the car away from his own car, scraping up the exterior. Sam was not amused at the further destruction of the vehicle he loved as much as his wife.

"Deeks, if you come with us, your career at LAPD is probably ruined."

Deeks did not hesitate or even think about Kensi's words because he had already contemplated all of that when he decided to distract the police back at her apartment.

"I haven't felt this alive in years. Besides, I already ruined my career, at least I can get one last adventure in, right?" he said with a smile.

"Okay, you're in. But you're not driving my car. Ask Kensi the rule about the car."

Kensi scowled as she repeated a rule she sounded far too familiar with.

"JV gets backseat. Varsity gets to drive and ride shotgun."

"As a Junior Agent and our Liaison Officer that qualifies you both as JV. Backseat, kiddos." Callen smirked at them to emphasize his words.

As they drove away from the wreck, Sam was on the phone updating Hetty, Nate, and Eric on the past half hour's events. Apparently, the trio back at the Mission had also found some information to update them. The frown on his face grew into a scowl as the three other occupants looked on, waiting to know what was going on. Sam couldn't help but feel grateful he was bald because this mission would have given him gray hairs had he had any hair to go gray.

"Where should we go?" came Sam's part of the conversation.

"Why?"

"Okay, I'll let him know."

"G, turn around. Head towards Venice."

"Why?" came a blend of three voices speaking simultaneously.

"We've all been compromised. Vance gave Hetty notice to get herself, Eric and Nate out of there. The director of Homeland Security is looking to bring us in for questioning."

"We could explain that though, right? Just tell them what happened."

"Deeks, they're talking about sending us all to Guantanamo. No one would hear from any of us from quite awhile."

"What aren't you telling us?" Callen knew his partner and best friend well enough to know he was hiding something.

"There was a bombing at Fort Pendleton. Twenty-nine marines were killed and more were injured."

He hesitated before continuing, noticing the horror on Kensi's face. The Fort had been a second home to her and his next words would cause her more pain.

"All the evidence points to us."

"Where are we going?"

The three agents looked at each other as understanding dawned on Kensi and Callen. Neither of them was happy about it either.

Deeks looked perplexed. "Someone want to clue me in?"


	6. Chapter 6

AN: Thanks for the great reviews and constructive feedback. I like to know what works and what doesn't. This chapter is not my best but I felt that I needed an explanation chapter to clue everyone in to what was going on and why it was going on. No worries, the action and drama will be back next chapter.

Another wonderful thank you to Lou who does an extraordinary job betaing.

"Someone want to clue me in?" The question hung in the air until the brunette agent decided to have pity on the detective who just ended his career for her and her team.

"We have a safety plan in case something happens where all of us are in danger. We picked a meeting spot. We have twenty-four hours to get there before the team splits up." She shook her head, a little sadly. "We've never had to implement the plan before."

"Where are we going?" Deeks asked, sounding more curious than worried. The situation was bad, he recognized that, but if he was honest with himself, he was excited to be included.

"Venice," Sam answered curtly. The former SEAL was hoping that Deek would get the hint and stop asking questions. He was in no mood to play twenty questions with the eager beaver in the backseat for the next hour.

"Where in Venice?"

G smirked at Sam from the front seat. His partner was cranky. G was a little miffed himself, but had been in worst situations. At this moment, he was simply grateful that his entire team was alive. The senior NCIS leader was confident that the seven of them would find a solution.

"Hey Deeks, I've got a question for you. What happened to the LAPD liaison that pissed off the former, but still lethal, Navy SEAL by asking too many pointless questions?"

Kensi gave Deeks a pointed look, hinting that silence was the best answer. Deeks raised his eyebrows at her, baffled by her expression.

"I don't know, what happened?" Deeks asked flashing what was meant to be a charming smile but came across much goofier than intended.

"You know, Sam. He's kind of catchy. I'm starting to like him," Callen answered, ignoring Deeks.

"Yeah, well herpes is kind of catchy too, but I don't want that either."

"But you can't get rid of it. You just have to learn to live with it."

"Should I be offended that you're comparing me to a venereal disease?"

"The answer is in the question." Sam chuckled to himself.

They spent the rest of the car ride in silence, each person contemplating what they would do once they reached the safe house.

-  
About an hour later, Sam parked in front of a store in the not so great section of Venice Beach. Three hookers had approached the car at various lights. Obvious drug deals took place in parked cars on the streets around them.

The four of them checked that their guns were loaded before stepping out of the car. Callen got out of the car sniffing and rubbing his nose neurotically, looking like he was in bad need of a fix. Deeks quickly got the hint and joined in. The paranoia of an addict gave both men an excuse to keep turning their heads and looking around for cops. Sam had his arm possessively around Kensi glaring at every male on the block letting them know that she was his. Kensi played her part as a submissive girlfriend well, not looking up or making any eye contact.

Blending into the scenery, no one noticed anything off about the four and quickly went back to their illicit activities. With that the quartet made their way into a store called the "Adult Emporium."

"We're going to a sex shop? This is the big plan?" Deeks eyebrows rose in Callen's direction.

"Wait until see you what's behind the curtain," Kensi whispered into his ear. The blond man jumped in surprise to find her suddenly right behind him.

One by one, they nonchalantly made their way behind one of the curtains, where you would expect to find the triple X-rated movies.

In addition to the offensive and cheap porn playing there was an inconspicuous door hidden behind another curtain. Callen unlocked it and they entered one by one.

"What is this? Are we entering the magical world of Narnia?" Kensi asked.

Sam shot her a look that said he didn't find her particularly amusing at the moment either. Unlike Deeks, she knew enough to look contrite and found herself rewarded with a smile from her friend.

"I don't know about Narnia, but we definitely aren't in Kansas anymore, Dorothy," Callen quipped as they walked into a large warehouse style room with a row of unmarked black SUVs.

"Well Deeks has the cowardly lion look down," she absentmindedly joked, even as her real focus was on the room.

Four stuffed duffel bags leaned against the wall. Each had a paper tag hanging from it.

"I guess Hetty, Eric, and Nate have already been here," Callen commented.

"I thought they were supposed to wait?" Deeks asked.

"Relax. This isn't our actual destination. It's a place stop to change clothes, grab a new car, before heading to our actual destination. In case we've been bugged. Everyone has to leave their cell phones as well. They can be used to trace us."

"So where are we actually going?" asked the junior agent.

"I don't know. I helped Hetty find this place but she thought it was safer if she and the director were the only ones who knew the final destination."

Without another word, they walked over to the duffel bags with their names on it.

"Wait, how did Hetty know I was going to be part of this?" Deeks responded baffled. He suddenly sounded worried.

"She's Hetty. You don't ask questions. But your name was part of the setup. It was only a matter of time before you got involved, and whether we like it or not you're one of us. You just destroyed your career to save Kensi."

Deeks smiled shyly at the group. He had never meant a team so annoying; however, he had also never met a group so dedicated and loyal to each other either. As if to punctuate the moment, Sam clapped him on the back, dark eyes filled with gratitude.

The moment of sentimentality was ruined as a string of curses in another language, probably Portuguese, came flying out of the Kensi's mouth.

The three men looked over Kensi's shoulder at the contents of the duffel bag and let out their own string of curses in a variety of languages.

"She didn't."

"She did," was Sam's response to his partner's declaration.

They spread out, each picking a spot to change into the clothes Hetty had provided for them.

"This is low, even by her standards," Kesi moaned as she put on the items picked out by her supervisor.

"Eyes up front," Callen yelled as Sam hit the tow-headed LAPD officer for turning to look at Kensi as she spoke. This time he had the intelligence to look sheepish.

Once everyone was properly dressed, Callen turned to the young woman, continuing the conversation. "I don't know, I think the hat suits you, he said and plunked the accessory down on her head.

It took ten grueling hours to reach their destination. They had to take precautions to ensure they were not followed. As they entered the location with the morning sun now beaming down upon them they looked up at the large artifice in front of them, they were all dwelling on their own thoughts; most of them included derogatory thoughts to their diminutive leader. Staring down at them was none other than Sleeping Beauty's Castle.

The four individuals were all wearing shirts that had various Disney characters on the front with Walker Family Vacation under the picture. On the back of the shirts were their individual new names and atop their heads were pairs of the infamous Disney ears.

"I can't believe the name she picked out for me," whined G.

"Why is that Mr. Callen?" came the voice of Hetty from behind him followed by Eric in a pair of Sorcerer Mickey ears and Nate in the Goofy hat and ears.

"Jay, Hetty? You made my name another letter!" It was hard to take the agent seriously when he had a pair of Pirates of the Caribbean Mickey Mouse ears on top of his head.

"Why here, Hetty?" asked Sam ignoring his partner.

"It's actually kind of brilliant," Nate spoke up. "It's the perfect location. It's hard to track us here with all these people. We can speak pretty openly. There are too many people here to monitor or pick out a specific conversation. It's easy to get lost here. And, they can't attack us here. No one would come after us in the middle of Disneyland."

"Nate is quite right, Sam. This will give us a chance to regroup and decide our next course. Now, we have reservations at Sleeping Beauty's Castle for breakfast. I can fill you in on what happened."

"Okay, but I have one question," Deeks responded raising his hand.

"Yes, Detective Deeks?" Hetty replied.

"How exactly is Todd," pointing to the back of Sam's Walker Family Vacation t-shirt, "supposed to be related to us?"

"I'm adopted. I guess that makes you the funny uncle," muttered Sam walking towards the castle.

"Smile, lady and gentlemen, we are at the happiest place on Earth."

"I think that's Disney World, Hetty." The LAPD detective earned a glare for his efforts.

As the seven of them sat down to a breakfast that included a humiliating picture with the various princesses Callen, sat back thinking about the incredulity of the situation. As a kid, he never had the chance to partake in a happy family or take road trips, let alone visit the incredibly expensive Disney Land. As an adult, the place had never appealed to him much. All the happy families reminded him of what he never had. Sitting here, in the happiest place on Earth, he finally made it to this legendary locale with his family. Of course he was here with family after being chased here by… well he didn't know who, yet, but he did know he would protect these six individuals.

Callen was interrupted from his thoughts by the sound of his best friend's voice followed by a nudge from said friend.

"What you got for us, Hetty? What's going on?"

"Director Vance alerted me some time ago that there was a leak in our department. As I said before, our names kept appearing in locations all over the world, afterwards a group or situation we were monitoring would be alerted and they would break up or disappear. Eric, Nate, Martin, and myself were ruled out. I Though my name never appeared in connection with any of the said incidences, my connection to you made me a suspect. With some help from Agent Gibbs' team, the four of us were ruled out as suspects. Due to vacations, international ops, and god knows what else, you three could not be eliminated as suspects," she addressed her attention to Sam, Callen, and Kensi with her last comment.

Three heads shot up ready to defend themselves but were quickly silenced by Hetty's hand. It was amazing how a mere gesture from such a small woman could stop three deadly agents in their tracks.

"I know the three of you are innocent, as does Director Vance," she remarked pointedly.

"Okay, so what happened at Fort Pendleton?" Callen questioned.

"Yesterday while we were dealing with the situation with Ms. Blye, a bomb was detonated at the Fort's mess hall. Thankfully, it was during a low traffic time; however, twenty-nine marines were killed with fifteen more sustaining injuries. The bomb seems to have been detonated from Mr. Hanna's cell phone while Mr. Callen and Ms. Blye's fingerprints were located at the scene."

"How come this is the first time we are hearing about this bombing?" Deeks asked.

"Director Vance informed me as soon as he could reach me. We were a little busy yesterday," she delicately commented, sending Kensi a sympathetic glance across the breakfast table. "Director Vance and I both agreed not to tell any of you at the time. Kensi was your top priority and we did not want to change that. In addition, with Ms. Blye's close ties with Fort Pendleton we did not want to upset her anymore."

Nate found the young woman's hand under the table and squeezed it gently, offering non-judgmental friendship and support, which she returned with a slightly watery but very appreciative smile.

Eric jumped in at this point taking over the story from Hetty who was looking a bit emotionally drained.

"While you guys were in that showdown, Director Vance called with an update about the bombing. They had found some viable fingerprints on pieces of the explosive, which traced back to Callen and Kensi. Your prints are already in the system so it was pretty instantaneous. Based on the type of explosive it was determined that it was detonated by a cell phone that traced back to Sam. He called and told us we had ten minutes to run like hell because the FBI and CIA and every other acronym agency in the book was on route to collect the entire team for questioning. But we know by questioning that means none of us would ever see sunlight again. So we booked it and here we are."

"Ok, wait, so if the bombing occurred _after_ Kensi was at the Mission then it couldn't have been Renko who detonated the bomb," Sam interjected.

"Basically. Someone else activated your phone," Eric responded.

"I think I have something."

Everyone turned to the psychologist who had been quiet during the breakfast studying papers rather than giving the story his full attention as he had already heard it. Something about an adult male in ridiculous ears was hard to take serious but it was Nate and no one looked twice.

"I've been reading Renko's file. Something happened to trigger this. Nothing about this situation fits his profile."

"I agree, when he was holding the gun to me he hesitated. It was like he was begging to be put out of his misery and then his face morphed and he looked nasty."

"I agree with you, Kenz. I found something in his file that might explain this. Renko's files are almost as scarce as Callen's. It looks like someone recently stole part of his file, but it looks like he had a daughter, Allison. The information on her has been taken out. What if they were using his daughter as leverage to get him to do whatever _they_ wanted?"

"That's a good theory, but it's still just a theory. We need proof. And we still don't know who _they_ are."

"What about the little girl? If I killed Renko, what are they going to do with the little girl now that he's gone?"

"Kensi, stop it. That thinking is not going to save that girl."

Callen's order did little to stop the guilt racing through her head.

"G's right, Kenz. We got figure out who did this so we can find the little girl."

"That's all well and good guys, but I seem some characters heading our way, and they are definitely not a happy Mouse kind of characters."

Deeks' statement caused everyone to turn to the entrance of the restaurant where gentlemen in black suits and dark sunglasses were a showing a picture to Cinderella and Jasmine. Stuck in a room of happy families enjoying magical moments everyone's thoughts were how they were going to get out of and keep everyone safe.


	7. Chapter 7

AN: Thanks for all the lovely feedback. I wish I could write faster but I'm struggling with a block. I wrote the last two chapters and love them, I just can't seem to get the stuff in between! I'm trying and I will finish this story because I love the ending. Hope you enjoy. Thanks again to Lou. You rock and provide INVALUABLE feedback.

The seven of them felt trapped, sitting in Sleeping Beauty's castle. They had passed around a few ideas, but none of them were without risk. They wanted to get out of the restaurant without injuring themselves or putting the public around them in danger.

Nate had finally come up with an idea. The tall man crouched down to a table of five children next to him who had been admiring the Walker family's ears all throughout breakfast. He was letting the youngest, a little redheaded boy wear his oversized goofy hat with attached ears.

No one could hear what he was saying and he faced away from Kensi so she could not read his lips; however, the fact that the both parents and children were smiling indicated that they saw Nate as a gentle giant rather than a creepy pervert and pedophile, which was the last thing they needed to deal with.

A few moments later Nate walked back over to the group with his hands out.

"Hand over your hats."

"Why?"

"Those kids are going to help us out, but I promised them our hats in return. "

"With pleasure."

"Kensi, you and Callen are going to need to sign some autographs for those little girls."

The two agents in question looked up questioningly with identically raised eyebrows.

The psychologist smiled apologetically, "you may want to sign those autographs as Princess Jasmine and Prince Charming."

To their credit, both the agents readily obliged and signed the autograph books for the little girls.

Sam was the first to plop his Mickey Mouse ears on top of a shy little boy. Watching the little boy smile shyly with his face just poking out from the over-sized ears, Sam's heart melted. He thought of his own son and daughter. He hated being out here across the country. He wasn't there to make sure they finished their breakfast and made it to the bus stop on time. He did not get to tuck them in at night and tell them fairy tales about Prince G, Princess Kensi and a small but powerful witch named Hetty. Looking at the little boy, the former SEAL promised himself that as soon as he got home he was taking his wife and kids on a vacation. He would even suck it up and wear the ears again.

As soon as each of the children and their parents were adorned in the team's hats, the kids took off screaming towards the men dressed in black. Something about excited children and in the happiest place on Earth was contagious. The restaurant's other children had joined the original five and they were all jumping excitedly and pulling on the men's jackets.

The agents didn't waste time and hauled ass out of the restaurant.

"How the hell did you do that?" Deeks asked the question on every-one's mind as soon as they cleared the restaurant.

"I may have told them that those two men were very important men who worked directly for Mickey and they were looking for some excited kids who wanted to be on the float with Mickey during this afternoon's parade."

"Mr. Getz, that was brilliant. I knew there was a reason why I hired you."

The praise from Hetty and the admiring glances from his friends and coworkers and caused Nate to flush in embarrassment.

"Okay, what now? They know we're here. How do we get out?"

"We wait til night. They have fireworks here every night. We'll wait until it's at its busiest and sneak out in the rush. It's our best chance," Callen answered Eric's question, watching for the almost imperceptible nod from Hetty.

"Okay, but what do we do until then?"

"Well Miss Blye, you are in the happiest place on Earth, I would hope you would try to enjoy yourself. I believe Space Mountain should be your first stop, no?"

With that, the seven normally uptight and stressed individuals let loose and enjoyed their day. They were still careful and aware of their surroundings, but that did not stop them from enjoying all that the Mouse had to offer as the Walker family. They learned that Sam did not like things that spun very fast as the way he quickly ran off to the bathroom after his time on the teacups. Eric kicked all of their butts, except for Hetty, on the Astro Blaster ride that was like living a video game. Hetty bought them all copies of their picture from Tower of Terror where Deeks was hugging Sam's arm as they plummeted below. They learned of Nate's love of Haunted Mansion as he made them ride it three times in a row and it would have been more if Hetty had not insisted that Callen and Kensi, as Disneyland virgins, ride Dumbo together. Hetty also had that picture of the two of them laughing and looking almost innocent as they rode the elephant into the sky. That one was just for her and she would have it for many years.

As the sun set, they took their places with the other families on Main Street U.S.A. waiting for the fireworks. Instead of enjoying the night display though, they were plotting their escape and where they would go from here. Callen started to lay out his plan.

"We can't stay together. Sam and I are going to take Hetty and Eric to see if we can find out who is behind this. We're going to one of our safe houses so we can set Eric up with a computer and have him try and find a commonality between all these set ups. Kenz, you and Deeks take Nate and work out Renko's part in all this. If they did take his daughter, then we need to find her. Check out his house, his records, places he's been recently. There has to be something to help us find out where the girl is."

"How can we communicate between each other?"

"I already took care of that, Eric," Deeks said and pulled out a few cell phones, passing them around the members of the team. "I bought them from a frustrated dad. He was pretty pissed that his wife and kids were too busy texting and not enjoying the family fun," he answered the unspoken question arising from those around him.

The problem of communication now solved and the fireworks over, Sam, Callen, Hetty, and Eric started blending in with the other families in the mass exodus from the park. It only took a matter of minutes before Nate, Kensi, and Deeks had lost all sight of the others. They gave them a ten minute head start before joining the stampede themselves and heading towards the area of the parking lot where Hetty had arranged their transportation.

Meanwhile, Callen's group had just reached their car without any issue, which was surprising considering how different the four of them were. Having already changed their clothes in the park's bathrooms to clothing they had purchased there, the quartet headed back to L.A. despite their exhaustion. Hetty had arranged a safe house where Eric could begin tracking information about the Fort Pendleton bombing so at the very least he could prove their innocence and they could come out of hiding. Well, almost all of them. Kensi was still wanted for a double homicide; but if they could catch the person behind the bombing chances were they would find the same person who had set up Renko.

Turning her thoughts to Agent Renko, she could not help but admire Callen's understanding of his team. Kensi would blame herself about killing a little girl's father and endangering the little girl as well. She keenly understood the loss of a father. The only thing to alleviate that guilt would be to ensure the little girl's safety and with Kensi Blye fighting for her, Allison Renko stood a fighting chance.

Just as Callen's group had left the magical memories of Anaheim behind, Nate, Kensi and Deeks attempted to blend in with the families as they turned their backs on the castle and resumed the gravity of the situation they were all in. Unfortunately, they did not have the same ease that their compatriots did.

"We're being followed."

Kensi's quiet statement was instantly met with Nate panicking and instantly turning to look behind him, which earned him a sharp tug from Deeks and Kensi stomping on his toes.

"Dude, you can't look at them. Then they know we know. It was probably you being the gentle green giant that got us made," Deeks snapped. His busted nose hurt and nothing about the past two days had been easy.

"They're already following us. What does it matter if they know that we know that they now? I blend in here."

"You're right, the dad look is in," Deeks threw back, pointing to Nate's khakis and plaid button up shirt, very much looking like a young father.

"Okay, I might look like a dad. But at least at thirty, I've given up the word "Dude" and learned what a barber looks like."

"Boys. Why don't you put them away and play nice, please? We have more company coming up on our right," Kensi snapped.

Despite the annoyance in her voice, she actually found some amusement in their argument. She was not used to their mild mannered operational psychologist fighting back. Lately, he had been displaying an inner strength and something she could not put her name on. He was becoming more reluctant to sit back and watch; Nate wanted part of the action.

Though Deeks was currently skulking even as he was checking out the large, conspicuous men closing in around them, he managed to give the tall psychologist an appreciative smile. Nate was made up of something stronger than he previously thought. He filed this away for further thought as he had to find a way to get the three of them out there alive.

They were stuck between a rock and a gaggle of children and the men following them knew it. They could not draw their weapons here with so many kids. They had to make it to the parking lot. Luckily, a mouse gave them their opening. Mickey Mouse was walking out to greet the children as they exited the park and Deeks took advantage of this fact.

"Look! It's Mickey Mouse!"

Something about excitement is contagious in children. They hear or see it in others and they soon feel the need to jump in and be a part of whatever it is that's going. Sure enough, a stampede of screaming yelling kids and their exhausted parents when running towards the famous mouse. Kensi took Nate's hand and the three of them used the confusion to make a run for it. They successfully made it out of the park but they were not going to make it to their car.

"What do we do?"

"We can't go back to the van. We can't take the chance that they know about it. We have to get get out of here now."

Kensi's words met with acknowledgement. All eyes were on her own mismatched ones. Despite the pressure and the stress of the last few days, it felt good to have them look to her for an answer, to still trust her capability and skill. Yesterday had done some damage to her psyche and she was worried if she could survive it. Knowing that these two trusted her to come up with a solution let her know that she would get through this, eventually.

The junior field agent did not say anything, she just pushed her baseball cap over her eyes and walked up to a car. She motioned for Nate and Deeks to guard her as she began picking the lock on the Civic. Less than a minute later, they were all piling into the car.

"Are you going to hotwire the car too, Fern? I would really like to know where these illegal skills of yours came from, if I'm going to be your partner."

"One: My name is not Fern. Two: My dad taught me. Three: I don't need to hotwire the car, the idiot left an extra set of keys in the glove compartment. Four: You are most definitely not my partner."

"Kensi Marie Blye, you wound me."

She merely grunted in response and rolled her eyes starting the car and navigating through the throngs of people still exiting the park. As she pulled out onto the freeway, her thoughts went to Renko's daughter, Allison. Little did she know that she would soon make a huge sacrifice to try and save that girl, they all would.


	8. Chapter 8

AN: Again, thanks Lou for the wonderful and much needed editorial skills. Thanks everyone for writing. I appreciate the feedback!

Hours later Callen and company pulled up to a cozy looking house at the end of some cute suburban housing community with nothing but woods behind it. The kind of place where everyone's lawn met strict regulations standards, basketball nets were unheard of and the owners drove their perfect, 2.5 children to expensive private schools in overpriced gas guzzling SUVs. Even as Callen was thinking it, he realized he was being what Sam would call a "bitter Betty." Maybe that life was not bad. He grew up in foster homes with thrift store clothing at best. He attended public schools, when someone bothered to make sure he was going, and drove around in an old Buick Century when there had been a car.

Sam snapping at Hetty broke him out of his thoughts. 

"No. They think I bombed a Fort and Kensi not only helped, but also killed two people in the process. Sleep is not an option."

"Mr. Hanna. The fact that you are currently raising your voice at _me_," she placed a heavy emphasis on the word me, "is proof that you require sleep. We all require sleep right now; we have been awake for more than 48 hours." As she mentioned "we all" she turned her gaze upon Callen letting him know he was not excluded from her warning, either.

To every one's surprise, Callen agreed. "Hetty's right. Eric, finish setting up your equipment and take the bedroom upstairs. Hetty, you take the other bedroom. Sam can have living room and I'll take the office in the back."

Eric smiled appreciatively. He realized Sam and Callen were strategically placing themselves by the doors in case they had somehow been followed. He knew he couldn't protect himself but he could make sure they went into every situation with as much information as possible. That was his way of protecting them. After a good rest, he was going to make sure he got the evidence to keep his team safe and their integrity and honor intact.

As the four drifted off into a fitful sleep, Nate, Deeks, and Kensi were not that lucky. The three of them had switched turns driving so everyone could get some sleep. Kensi maintained a strong suspicion that Deeks only pretended to snore. Forget Nate. She kept seeing his eyes pop open when he thought she wasn't looking to stare at her with his concerned psychologist face. Deep down, she appreciated it and she probably needed the concern; however, right now, she needed to find Allison Renko more.

Nate was concerned and he had been peeping at her surreptitiously, or what he thought was surreptitiously, but not for the reasons she was assuming. Yes, he knew she was upset about killing Renko and she felt responsible for the marine's death, but that was to be expected; he would be more worried if she did not embrace those emotions. His concern was that Kensi had stopped discussing the fact that she was wanted for treason and murder and instead was focused on the little girl. That's all she mentioned when they discussed the situation in the car when they weren't feigning sleep. She felt it necessary to save Renko's kid. 

The little girl had been missing for some time and he was afraid what would happen to the junior agent if they found the little girl dead or worse, because there was always a worse. In addition to Kenz, he also worried about Marty Deeks. He appreciated the man's assistance, but his risk taking was troublesome. He effectively ended his career the moment he had agreed to cover Kensi back at the apartment and did not seem to consider the consequences of his decision. Instead, he jumped into the action. 

Nate was probably right to be worried. Deeks lay in the back of the car, pretending to sleep. He even faked snores. He had them fooled. Nate seemed like a great dude and had gotten them out of a tight situation. Deeks had underestimated him, but right now he wanted to avoid the tense looks that the Doc was throwing his and Kensi's way. It was his job, he got that. But right now he wanted some peace before the craziness of the situation came rushing back. The brunette up front was wanted for murder and treason and he was linked to all of this. That part didn't bother him, but he wasn't sure how he fit into the team. He wasn't one of them but he wasn't a stranger. How could he help keep these people safe?

When Callen woke up from his restless sleep, he smelled bacon sizzling. He went into the kitchen and saw the other three sitting at the kitchen. He shot Hetty a disapproving glance, knowing that she was the individual who stocked the empty kitchen cupboards while they were asleep. He wasn't sure how both he and Sam slept through it, but he was sure he didn't want to know. Anyway, the grumbling in his stomach made it difficult to stay mad at Hetty. Besides, he had the sneaking suspicion she could take them all out in their sleep any time she wanted. 

Eric sat at the breakfast table working on a laptop while shoveling pancakes and bacon into his mouth. He didn't look happy. 

"Hetty, this computer sucks. It's not what I'm used to using."

Sam jumped in before Hetty could respond, "So you can't do it?"

"I didn't say that." Eric shook his head. "I just said it's not what I'm used to. It's going to take awhile."

"Try faster. The sooner we get this solved, the sooner we can move back to the Mission and you can get your toys back." Callen's looked pointedly at Eric, reminding him that this was important.

"I understand that. I'm trying my best."

"We know you are."

They ate in silence, everyone going over the case in their heads when Eric piped up.

"I am a God among mortals."

"Care to share, Zeus?"

"I hacked into the Pendelton case file. The call that trigged the bomb came from Sam's phone—there is no question about that. And those are definitely Kensi's fingerprints on the pieces of the bomb they recovered."

"I thought you found something. How does finding evidence against us help, Eric? That makes you more about to be dead, not a God." Sam was close to snapping but Eric didn't seem to notice his friend's annoyance and kept on going.

"Callen's fingerprints are there too but he's not in the system. As an undercover agent, his prints aren't registered. Hetty had me set up your file with a fake set of prints, so whoever forged your prints didn't know about this. They planted fake results that came up with the fake set of prints. As a SEAL Sam was already in the database and Kensi is in there for a record; she was arrested when she was 19." 

"What did she get busted for?"

Despite the severity of the situation Callen's voice contained his trademark smirk. He would show her no mercy when this was all over. And it would be over.

"Mr. Callen, I think we have more important things to worry about other than Ms. Blye's youthful indiscretions."

"Disorderly conduct and indecent exposure."

"Mr. Beal, I too will also be guilty of a crime if you do not get to the point."

"Sorry, Hetty," he made sure to look contrite even as Sam gave him a nod of approval from behind.

"Mr. Hanna, I would think you would be more sympathetic to Kensi's indiscretions as I believe the first time we met I saved you from a similar situation."

Hetty possessed a power, some would call it magic, some witchcraft, but the current occupants of the room thought it just plain scary. The ex-SEAL blushed and glanced down at his feet while Callen looked shocked as he had never heard the story of how Sam and Hetty met. Either way, he just gained some new fodder to tease Sam with. He would think about this later when there was less at stake and took the initiative to turn the focus back onto the case.

"Okay, so someone framed us, we already know this. I'm still waiting for a miracle here, Eric."

"Someone hacked Sam's phone. The call bounced all over the place, Cambodia, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, New Zealand, Singapore, all over before dialing out from Sam's."

"So you're saying it can't be traced?"

"Not necessarily, the phone created a unique signature to bounce around. If you find the original phone I can tell you whether it originated from there."

"Eric," Callen's cool was beginning to wane.

"Whoever is doing this at some point had access to the phone." After the inquiring looks Eric continued. "I put top of the line encryption on all of your phones. We're talking my own special brand. It couldn't have been done remotely. They would have had to have physical access to your phone at some point to override it."

"You might not be a god, but you're still pretty good, kid."

The laid-back technology specialist could not help but blush at the praise. Growing up in a strict family where perfection was a requirement, not an encouragement, praise was subconsciously still an effective motivator for the young man. Sam's was no exception.

"I think we should share our findings with the rest of them, don't you?"

As Hetty and company were discussing the situation Nate, Deeks, and Kensi had arrived at Renko's place exhausted and keyed up. They needed a lead, for reasons of practicality and mental stability. Kensi put the car in park and bounded out without a word, with Deeks just moments behind her. Nate exhaled deeply; rubbing his eyes with his palms as he reluctantly followed them. He could not stop them but he could be there.

The three split up to tackle the apartment. Nate had spent more and more time in the field and while he was no expert, he was competent, knew the basics, and provided an extra set of eyes. The three worked in silence until a voice broke the silence.

"Doc, Fern, come check this out."

The LAPD officer's voice was enough to get the doctor moving but the woman with mismatched eyes growled even as she walked over. As Kensi walked over she looked and saw that Deeks had moved a desk to reveal a hole in the bedroom wall containing a locked chest.

"I guess we bring it with us?"

Nate smirked at Deeks' mistake. He obviously did not know this woman well, not yet anyway. Kensi smirked too and began fussing with her hair.

"Seriously, you think now is a time to worry about what you look like?"

"I always worry what I look like."

Even as she spoke, she pulled a bobby pin for her hair, which she began using to pick the lock on the chest. As the LAPD officer was about to show his appreciation and ask for a tutorial himself, they heard voices coming from the front door.

"Shit,"

The sentiment was shared by everyone. Deeks unholstered his gun but the junior agent was still rushing to pick the lock. This was something she needed to do.

"Kenz..."

It was amazing how much their resident doctor could convey with just his voice. Kensi was well aware that Nate was telling her to please hurry the hell up and don't let this consume you and this is not worth risking your life or ours. Just as the doctor could convey almost anything with his tone, the younger woman could do the same with her mismatched eyes. She quickly glanced at him and in that moment, he understood her meaning. She needed to do this and he would have to trust her. He did, she would never knowingly leave them in danger.

Meanwhile, Deeks stared in astonishment at the two. He was currently dating his partner Jess, but they still didn't have the knowledge and understanding that this team had. They were a barrel of misfits. Maybe it was because his girlfriend came from a happy home with loving parents that she couldn't quite understand why he was borderline lunatic fringe and enjoyed this.

"Look McGuyver, can we hurry this up? I hear at least four voices. There are only three of us and only two of us have guns."

"If you stop talking, I can do this faster."

As the voices got closer Kensi finally popped the lock and grabbed everything she could from the box and began stuffing it into the waistband of her jeans and down the front of her shirt. She had just grabbed her gun and got into position behind the door as two of the four men walked through. They saw Nate first and yelled, alerting their sure to be equally large companions of the situation. The doctor had enough common sense to jump behind the bed as the first man took aim and fired right where Nate's head had been just moments before. The two-armed agents shot the man going after Nate and watched as he quickly dropped to the floor, not noticing the two positioned at the side of the door. The second one saw Deeks first and lunged at the man knocking the blond to the ground and sending his gun flying. Kensi immediately went to help him as the man was wrestling the LAPD officer and throwing a punch squarely into his face; however, the two thugs who had not yet entered the room began firing shots at the young woman.

She quickly assessed the situation. Deeks continued to struggle with the man on the floor, so he would not be providing any backup and Nate was unarmed. She ducked her head around the door to see the female thug charging her. She managed to raise her gun and hit the companion in the chest, but the female goon kept coming at her and she soon joined Deeks on the floor. She felt the woman's gun crash into ribs and heard a sickening crack as bone broke. As Renko was apt to tell anyone who would listen, Kensi Marie was small but mean. This time did not prove an exception. She threw her elbow out, breaking the woman's nose with a gratifying snap and followed up with a knee to the gut. Kensi finished it off by sending the woman's head slamming into the floor. Taking a second to breathe, she gasped as the sound of a gun went off inches from her ear and watched in awe at what unfolded in front of her.


	9. Chapter 9

AN: Thanks for the feedback! I think I am over my writer's block. Thanks again to the magnificent, lovely, talented beta, Lou, for fabulous feedback.

Standing above the scene with his arms shaking was none other then Doctor Nathaniel Getz. Both the injured agents stared in awe and gratefulness. Nate wanted to break down. He had killed a man. His life was devoted to keeping people sane and happy and alive. He had even took an oath to that effect. Yet, he had just taken someone's life. Thoughts of the man's life tumbled around Nate's mind like pebbles in a whirlpool. 

Deeks grunted, snapping Nate out of his stupor. The tall man shoved everything to the back of his mind. He would have a lot to work through when this was done, but right now, he had to take care of the two people in front of him and damn if they didn't need care right now. His eyes turned to Kensi first. The psychologist prided himself on being an evolved man, but he still had the natural instinct to protect women, even though the woman in question was quite capable of taking care of herself. She'd proven it more than once. A rueful smile touched his lips as he remembered what had happened when he'd tried to chase a man who had been hitting on her in a bar.

She shifted a little, drawing his attention back to the present. He knelt at her side, checking her anxiously. Physically, she looked okay, apart from assorted bumps and bruises. The blood covering her seemed to be from the man he just shot and killed and not her. The haunted look in her eyes and the short quick breaths alerted him to the fact that she was probably reliving the scene in her apartment. He patted her shoulder as he pushed himself to his feet. Deeks was more urgent. The man, also covered in someone else's blood, had a hole in his shoulder from a gunshot wound. Without a second thought, Nate instantly switched to doctor mode and turned off the fear that threatened to swallow him whole. 

Nate rushed over to Deeks and immediately applied pressure to the wound.  
"How you doing, Marty?"

"Marty? Shit, am I dying?"

The psychologist smiled at the LAPD officer.

"Nope, I don't think a gun shot wound to the shoulder is going to kill you. I think you are stuck with us for awhile longer."

"You really know how to make a guy feel welcome. I get my car rammed, chased, shot. It's been fantastic." Even as the words came out of his mouth, the tow-head realized in some twisted way it was true. He was an only child, his mom was dead, and he hadn't spoken with his dad in years. In some sick way, this was the most fun he had in years.

"Kensi, can you hand me a sheet?"

Nate's words were purposefully loud and forceful, and they did the trick. The woman popped her head up and shook off whatever unhappy thoughts she was immersed in.

"Huh?"

"Can you grab me a sheet, I want to tie off Deeks' wound?"

Kensi jumped off the floor and handed Nate the requested sheet and the doctor went to work treating the wound.

"Fern, I told you that you were missing out. One night with me is like a religious experience."

Both Nate and Kensi started at him confused.

"Come on, I'm holy!"

The two groaned at the response.

"That was bad, even for you. I can see right through you, Martin Deeks."

"A comedian. Cute."

The bickering of the future friends and partners was interrupted by the voice of reason.

"Well, I think you'll live. The bullet went straight through. It will hurt and we'll eventually need to stitch you up, but other than a nasty scar, you are fine."

"Chicks dig scars."

With this last comment, he batted his lashes at Kensi, who just snorted in disgust.

Nate folded the sheet and pressed it against the wound. Deeks sucked in a sharp breath, hands clenching into fists at his sides. He was pale under his tan, and trembling.

"Doc, thank you. You saved my life."

Deeks had grabbed the other man's arm and looked him in the eyes. The blond did not know the psychologist well, but he knew that this man had killed for him and Kensi. He broke an oath to always save lives and instead took one. The fact that the other man was gently shaking, barely noticeable, underneath Deeks' hand let him know that he was correct.

Though it was barely audible, the other man responded with, "Anytime." Deeks knew that the sentiment was heartfelt.

"Now, what about you, Fern. That big butch woman seemed to take a liking to you. But I would guess you're a hit with the ladies, am I right?"

Deeks knew when to lighten the mood; you had to give him that.

"Who me? I'm fine, I am not the one with a hole in my shoulder having a religious experience."

"Somehow, you strike me as the type of chick who takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin' even if she was dying."

"She is," Nate replied giving the brunette a look that conveyed he knew her far too well.

"Marty is right. Let's take a look."

"How about later? I think that we should probably make tracks. We are in a residential neighborhood, someone heard something. We don't want to get caught here. No one is going to be able to save the little girl if we get caught. Besides, Hetty would punish us for a century if we stuck her with that much paperwork."

The two man shared a look over the young woman's head without her noticing, which in itself suggested she was injured if their overly vigilant junior agent was not paying attention. No one could doubt she had a point.

"You're right, we have to get you both to a hospital."

"No way, Jose." Nate was surprised that the source of discontent came from the LAPD officer.

"Look, Doc, I know what you're going to say. But, at this point Kensi is wanted for treason and I'm at least an accessory. I guarantee that every police officer and fed in the area is combing the hospitals looking for us after the car crash. I am not what you would call a popular guy, now I that is surprising, but I can name at least ten officers would love to nail my ass to the wall. Again, Kensi treason, homicide… Not good."

The psychologist sighed and rubbed his chin. They both looked awful. Deek's shoulder was still bleeding, and Kensi was pale and hollow eyed. They were being chased by their own government and no one had slept in days. This wasn't a great situation and the detective was right, they needed to get out of here.

"Okay, let's go." With his words the three took one quick look around and made a dash to the car, pulling away as they heard the tell tale cry of sirens not too far away. 

Back at the safe house, the other four were doing some research on the Camp Pendleton bombing when Callen's cell rang. Their fearless leader didn't even bother saying hello, he went straight to the good stuff. 

"What'd you find?" 

The eyes of Eric, Hetty, and Sam followed him as he was having a one sided conversation and they were interested in finding out what happened.

"What!" Are you alright? Wait, let me put you on speaker."

The last comment was directed as the three pair of eyes took on a decidedly anxious note.

"They were waiting for us. We grabbed some paperwork we found in a safe but I am not sure what it is or what kind of information it provides." The anxious voice of Kensi Blye filled the air of the tension filled home.

"What happened?"

"We got there and were canvasing the area when four big ass dudes just took us down. I mean these guys were big wrestler types," Deeks supplied.

"They took you down. And one of those 'big ass dudes' was a woman."

"Kensi. Deeks. Play nice. We are all wanted for murder and/or treason at the moment."

Sam had taken the phone out of Callen's hand and was administering his own special mother hen brand of care.

"Where's Nate? Is he okay? Is anyone hurt?"

"Hi Sam. I'm fine, I can't say the same about the other two. Deeks got shot in the shoulder and we had to run so I haven't checked out Kensi yet, but I would bet that she's got an injury or two. They both need to rest and medical care. Where should we go?"

"Mr. Getz, bring Mr. Deeks and Agent Blye back to the following address. Sam will meet you there and make sure no one is following you and bring you back to the safe house. Before you say anything, Ms. Blye, my order stands. Mr. Hanna will retrieve you.

The words died on Kensi's lips as she was ready to argue she was competent enough to ensure that she got Nate and Deeks to the safe house without anyone following them. She knew better than to argue with their diminutive leader.

Three hours later the quartet walked into the house with Sam hovering over the three covered in blood. Eric just looked helpless, not sure what he should be doing. Callen made eye contact with Kensi who was silently pleading him to get Sam away. His blue eyes met her one hazel and one dark brown eye with a look that told her that the former SEAL had every reason to be worried about them right now. Nate was trying to convince Deeks to stay sitting down. Sam and Kensi were arguing while Callen continued to ask what the hell happened.

A familiar sharp whistle stopped everyone in their tracks and they turned to look at Eric.

"Guys. We should take care of Nate, Kensi, and Deeks and then we can share what we found. I mean, well, if you think that's okay?"

Eric turned to Hetty for the last comment suddenly feeling insecure and uncomfortable with his declaration of control.

"No, Eric," she smiling at the younger man pleased with his behavior, "You are exactly right."

The smug look on Sam's face did not go unnoticed by the junior agent or the LAPD officer.

"Yeah, Nate, I think Deek's wound is bleeding again," Kensi sweetly retorted in attempting to throw the attention off herself. It worked when they realized that the makeshift bandages Nate had made out of sheets were now stained red again. Nate took Deeks and led him to the kitchen table and sat him down and begin to once again patch him up. Sam followed with actual bandages in hand and Hetty supervised while Eric looked nervously on, worried about his family.

With all of the attention on fixing the officer, she walked around until she found a bathroom. Sinking down onto the lip of the tub, all of the pain and exhaustion came out in a sigh that said everything.

"So, what happened, Kenz?"

The sound of Callen standing in the doorway of the bathroom startled her enough that she jumped off and began to lose her balance before Callen's hands settled on her shoulders as he provided her the balance that seemed to elude her at the moment. She looked up sheepishly.

"They got the drop on us. Nate was weaponless and there were four of them and two of us. Deeks took one... I shot two of them, but one of them got the drop on me. We were fighting. It was messy. All of us should be dead. They were about to kill us."

"Are you saying," Callen stopped, waiting for Kensi to continue, not believing what he knew was about to come out of the brunette's mouth.

"Yup, it was Nate. We would have been dead if he hadn't been there. He took one of the perp's guns and shot our attacker. Callen, he was pretty shaken up. I don't know how he is going to deal with this."

Callen was not one for serious emotions but the situation seemed to require it. "Kensi. He's going to get through it the same way you're going to get through what happened to you."

The honesty in his eyes scared her the same way the vulnerability in her eyes scared him.

"How's that?" she whispered.

"With us."

"That simple?"

"That simple." 

They stayed there for a few moments letting their terse but impactful conversation sink in before Callen spoke again.

"Come on, let's get you checked out." 

"Me," she replied her voice unnaturally high, "I'm fine. I didn't get shot."

"Kensi, you can come peacefully or we can sick Sam in here."

"I could take him." 

He looked at her questioningly and wasn't entirely sure that she was bluffing. 

"Maybe, but you couldn't take us both." 

"You like me too much to try." 

"Alright, if you don't come of your own volition, I'm going to have Eric check the police records to see why one Kensi Marie Blye was arrested for disorderly conduct and indecent exposure." 

The shocked look in her eyes was enough to make him smirk that smug Callen look, but, it worked. She begrudgingly stood up and followed him out of the bathroom. They had only taken three steps before Sam was upon them, hovering with that concerned mother hen look in his eyes. 

"Nate's done with Deeks. Your turn." His words punctuated by a sharp look. It was Sam worry level 5. Five was pretty damn bad.

The SEAL punctuated his words with a look that normally left suspects shaken, but the brown-eyed beauty found herself immune to the scary look. Maybe because she knew this tough, tall, strong, man that oozed authority was the same man that monitored Callen's cholesterol intake, that forced tea down Eric's throat when he came down with laryngitis, and had once threw her over his shoulder and manhandled her into the doctor's office when she had pneumonia. He was actually just an overprotective teddy bear when it came to his team and family. Loyalty was something he learned in the service and it had stuck with him, hard.

"Okay, let's go."

"I mean it Kensi, we need to get you look…," he stopped mid-sentence and looked at her in amazement. This young woman, former marine brat, and queen of illegal skills, never ceased to surprise him. She looked over her shoulder and batted her eyelashes before following their leader into the kitchen where Nate was waiting for her, relieved that G had gotten her to cooperate. 

"How's the shoulder?" She sat down in the chair, avoiding eye contact with Nate. 

"I'll survive. They patched me up. No serious damage."

"Let's see if we can say the same about you." This time she looked at him in the eyes and she realized Callen was right. Their operational psychologist was going through the same emotions that she was. 

After some intimidation tactics from Sam and Callen, it was Hetty that got her to confess that she had broken her rib, which after palpitating her ribcage, Nate amended to broken ribs. That and a wound on her head that they realized was a bullet graze consisted of her injuries.

Injuries assessed and a change of clothing, which Hetty mysteriously pulled out of a closet and that fit them perfectly, the team regrouped in the living room, wary and anxious, but eating a dinner that Hetty had again mysteriously provided. They were eating peacefully, Hetty insisting on a few hours of rest for before continuing their search when Nate jumped off the couch.

"I think I know who is behind this."


	10. Chapter 10

A/N Thank you to the always wonderful editing and suggestions courtesy of Lou, whose own writing has influenced the writing of Chapter 11!

Everyone turned to the tall man and stared, waiting for Nate to continue. 

Sam was the first to speak. The frustration of the past few days had left him with little tolerance or patience. 

"Nate, who the hell is behind this?" 

Now that everyone's attention fixed on Nate, he looked anxious. Sweat rolled down his face.  
"Well, I… I'm not sure. I mean, I wouldn't want to make an accusation, but..."  
Hetty watched quietly from the background as the doctor's hand went to his chin in a telltale sign of anxiety. She sighed deeply because she knew what name was about to come out of his mouth because she had come to the same conclusion. Unlike the younger man, she was waiting until she could gather proof. She thought the team needed some respite before they continued. What they were about to realize would change all of them and increase the danger they were already in.

Their diminutive leader opened her mouth to put the operational psychologist out of his misery when the sounds of something flying through glass windows interrupted her confession. Tear gas. As she watched her four, three really, she had not yet lured Deeks away from the LAPD, draw their guns she wondered how the attackers had gotten past the team's security measures. As the team began looking for bad guys she realized it was a hopeless cause.

Kensi was firing into the fog but it was becoming a losing battle as her lungs began to fill with the gas and she choked on the air. Agent Callen was not fairing any better. As gunfire tore through their sanctuary the searing pain of a bullet, a pain she was entirely too familiar with, ripped through her stomach. As consciousness quickly slipped away, Henrietta Lange saw Nate's head hit the side of a desk and she distinctly thought she heard Eric scream her name. 

When Nathaniel Getz awoke he instantly began gagging. A rag tasting like gasoline or something equally foul was stuffed into his mouth. He closed his eyes and willed himself to breathe through his nose. It took over ten minutes for the man to calm himself down but when he did, he realized three things. He was in a van. His head throbbed along with his right leg. And there was someone else next to him. He could hear the heavy muffled breathing. It was male. At least they were breathing. Moving himself closer to the person, which was difficult being tightly bound at the wrists, knees, and ankles, he stretched out his fingers, desperately trying to make contact. Nate's hands finally grabbed shirt and he felt strong, rippling muscles beneath a cotton shirt. Sam.

Relief washed over the psychologist. If Sam were here then he would be safer. The former SEAL would never let anything happen to him. There was a safety in numbers. More importantly, he was not alone. After everything that happened, he had no problem admitting he was happy to have Sam here. Not happy that Sam was in trouble, but that he would get them out.

Shit. If strong, quick, intelligent, ex-SEAL Sam Hanna was in the car then he was royally fucked. If he had gotten caught that meant the others could to. If there others were caught, who would rescue them? No one. Especially as their own government viewed them as traitors. No one would mourn their deaths. His family would be humiliated and ashamed their son was a traitor. Nate let these thoughts build up in his head until he could not breathe. He prayed someone had escaped. Actually prayed, something he did not normally indulge in.

He sure as hell hoped Hetty was still alive and someone got her out. He had seen the bullet tear into her abdomen. He was a doctor and knew the damage a bullet to the abdoment could cause. It was mess and there were too many vital organs in that area. She was old. Nathaniel Getz would never admit that to her face, but it was nonetheless true. She could not fight back the way Callen had from his wounds. These thoughts quickly absorbed him until he worked himself in a panic. Doctor or not, Nate Getz could not control his breathing and quickly found himself devoid of precious oxygen. His last thought before succumbing to unconsciousness was that he hoped Eric was alright. Eric was innocent. He knew that Eric could survive an interrogation, he had personally seen to that, but he was not sure if he would be able to handle the betrayal. 

Eric Beal repeated the same mantra in his head. "Just keep swimming, Just keep swimming." It was silly that a 26-year-old man would be chanting a line from _Finding__Nemo_. But, it was applicable. He had to keep his head above water and keep swimming. Just keep swimming.

Deeks was in the seat next to him, taking his eyes off the road every few seconds to shoot him strange looks.

"Dude, why do you keep singing some Disney song?"

"I, um, I just need to..."

"Cool, I was just wondering. Do what you need to." There was a beat of silence before Deeks continued, you know I recite legal statutes in my head sometimes. Helps keep bad thoughts out."

"Legal statutes?" Eric took the bait and some of the tension had left his shoulders.

"Yup, legal statutes. Used to be a lawyer."

"Oh." Eric realized that there was probably a story behind it. Working with the team for as long as he had, Eric Beal knew when someone had a skeleton. He knew it was better not to touch those skeletons; they would make their way out into the light eventually.

Deeks shot the younger man an appraising glance; the intelligence analyst was much more intelligent and adept at reading people than he pretended. Marty took a look around and sighed. This situation fucking sucked. Noticing Eric's hyperventilating from the next seat, he agreed.

"Hey man, it's cool. We got out."

Their resident surfer turned and all the calm had left his face.

"_We_got out, _they_didn't. Hetty got shot! Do you know how bad GSW wounds can be? I saw Nate and Sam go down too. Callen and Kensi looked like they were about to pass out from the gas so I am sure they didn't make it out. What the hell can we do? We don't even know who the fuck is behind this! This is not cool. _We_ got out, but what can we_do_? I'm useless without a computer. This sucks! My dad always told me I was a failure."

"Hey, my dad told me I was nothing either. Look at me now, accessory for treason. I would say that's a lot more than nothing."

It worked, Eric let out a small though tension filled laugh.

"You feel better now?"

"A little."

The two looked at each other and the tension came out in an ill-timed laugh; however, they did feel a little better. They were still screwed, but they were out and there was a chance they could all survive this. 

"Eric, did Nate mention anything about who would have done this?"

"No, he's not like that. He wouldn't say something until he thought it was for sure."

They drove in silence for another twenty minutes, no destination in sight, just trying to work out what their next step should be.

"Marty," Eric's voice was uncharacteristically shy and quiet. The use of his first name unnerved the cop.

He was not good at the taking life seriously thing. He was a, make light of a tense situation kind of guy. The twenty-something next to him looked fragile and he felt like he was looking at a wounded dog. You just don't kick someone when they're down, so he sucked it up and took the situation seriously.

"Yeah, man?"

"Do you," he hesitated afraid his words would give life to an unthinkable reality, "do you think that they made it out okay, that Hetty is going to be alright?"

Deeks didn't answer right away. He wouldn't lie.

Eric and Deeks were both replaying the same horrible ten minutes back out their supposed sanctuary. It was hard to believe that so much damage could be wreaked in a mere ten minutes. Things seemed better. Nate knew who the jackass behind this was. They would find out and kick some ass. Clear their names and grab a beer. Okay, maybe some of them needed a trip to an emergency room, but right after that, there would be beers. That's where everything went to hell.

Both men had hoped that their hideout was almost over and they could clear their names. They were both now feeling as if they had jinxed the situation. Glass shattering had caught them all unawares. An LAPD cop, an ex-SEAL, a man that had gone through every ABC agency in the government, a former NCIS operative with forty years under her belt, and… well hell, he had no idea where Kensi Blye came from but the girl knew what she was doing, not one of them had heard the attack. Whoever these people were, they were well trained to get the drop on this group.

"Where are we going?"

"I don't know. If I got myself in a situation I would probably call Hetty."

"You just met her a few months ago."

"LAPD cops don't like me and the little lady knows her stuff."

"So wha…"

Eric's response was cut off by the sound of screeching tires as Marty Deeks slammed on the brakes and a slew of four letter words jumped from his lips.

In front of both men was a barrier of LAPD officers, FBI, CIA, you name it, they were standing there. Deeks went to put the car in reverse, not sure how they were caught, but the red dots over the tech's head and heart sealed their fate. If it were just him, he would have made a run for it, but he would not take Eric down trying to be a hero.

"Well Thelma, it's the end of the line for us."

The two stared at each other, shook hands, and stepped out of the car with hands in the air. 

Sam Hanna woke up on some dirty floor and began to appraise his surroundings. He had seen worse accommodations in Afghanistan. No furniture. The only source of light coming from a single weak light bulb coming from down the hall. The absence of light generally made the captive feel hopeless. People got a bit crazy in the dark. Nate would be the expert about the psychology of imprisonment but he was currently passed out tied up across the room. He had hoped the psychologist and good friend would wake up so at least he could find out whom to gear his hatred towards.

Hatred was it ever. Sam has been raised to love his country and in the SEALs he learned to hate the enemy, but it was hard when the one enemy had been shot by his pseudo sister in her living room and the bigger enemy was still an unknown entity who had shot his mentor and left his friends and family in an unknown state.

He knew Nate and Hetty's fate. He hoped Eric wasn't alone. He hoped his best friend and the woman who had wormed/barged her way into his heart were out there and safe. They could get them all out of this mess. Hell, even hoped the annoying LAPD officer was okay and safe.

The sound of steps coming down the hallway woke him from his reverie and Sam Hanna feigned sleep.  
"Agent Hanna, I don't think that will be necessary."

Sam Hanna looked up at the voice and sighed in relief. Help had come a lot sooner than expected.

"You bastard." The sound of anger spewing and slurring out of Nate's mouth caused a moment of confusion in Sam.

Then everything hit him like a ton of bricks. Doc's nervousness about accusing the person behind this,

Renko's involvement, the ability for someone to get the drop on them, it all made sense. He turned and spat at the man responsible for all of this and rewarded with a fierce kick to the head that knocked him out immediately.

G Callen and Kensi Blye were both shivering in a river contemplating how they ended up in the water naked together. 

When the tear gas had gone off, both agents were near its explosion and quickly inhaled the gas. They would not last long. Callen remembered hearing Eric scream Hetty's name and turning to watch the only mother figure he ever had take a bullet to the gut had ripped out his own. At the same moment that Callen watched Hetty take a bullet Kensi was watching Nate stumble in the chaos and smash his head on the corner of a desk knocking Sam out with him. She couldn't even see where the hell Deeks had gotten to. She had to get out of here. One of them had to get out alive or Allison Renko had little hope of survival.

She began grabbing around and her hand found Callen's shirt. They exchanged a look and both were on the same page. Callen needed revenge for Hetty and Kensi for this little girl. G needed to avenge the only mother figure he knew and the junior agent needed to personally apologize to the little girl she turned into a orphan, much the same way she herself was orphaned.

The two agents dropped to the ground and made a run for the upstairs bathroom. They got into the bathroom and shut the door, both taking deep breaths of clean air. Not wasting any time, they made quick work of the window. Callen watched the door as Kensi hoisted herself out the window and leaped to the tree a few feet away, just making the jump and pulling herself up onto the branches. Callen was next; however as he prepared to jump a man in black fatigues appeared with his gun aimed at the senior agent's head. Before he had a chance to shoot, he was dead on the floor thanks to the sharp shooting skills of the young brunette.

"Nice shooting, Ace."

"I will take that as a 'thanks, Kensi, for saving my ass.'"

"Kenz, if you could get us out of this situation, I would dress like Lady Gaga at the next karaoke night."

"I now have something to work toward."

Their safe house had been located in a wooded area in the mountains of California, which meant escaping by car they would easily be tracked on the one main road in the area. They'd have to go by foot. Little did they know that the lack of initial chasing came thanks to Deeks and Eric's great escape. They had only been walking in the woods for twenty minutes when the sounds of dog barking caught their attention. They both froze and listened for a moment hoping that it was just a random dog.

The barking persisted coming closer to their location. They were being chased down.

They both took off running knowing that it was only a matter of time, before the dogs found them. While the two, trained agents could easily take out the beasts, they would likely not take down all the would be captors that the dogs would bring with them.

It had been ten minutes and the dogs were too close for comfort. Glancing behind him, Callen thought he even saw fur in the distance. He was at the point where he was going to force them to stop to find a defensible location when Kensi grabbed him and pulled him ahead. His eyes descended upon mecca in the form of a mucky looking river. They made quick work of reaching it and wasted no time in jumping in. Without wasting anytime, Callen began stripping off his clothes.

"Callen," Kensi yelled at he made to take off his jeans. 

"Those are half breeds. Part hound part wolf. They have the keenest sense of smell. They will be able to pick up our scent the second we step out of the water. If we don't lose the clothes then the water is waste."

"How do you know what kind of dog it is?"

"Have you ever been chased by dogs in the Siberia?"

"Nope."

"Then trust me."

Before she could come up with a clever remark, Kensi Blye saw a whole lot more of G Callen than she had ever seen before. Despite the tension of the fact that they were being chased and she was a federal agent and an experienced woman, she froze and she stared.

His only response was to raise his eyebrow at her before turning around.

"Drop 'em, Kenz."

His words were light but his words carried a bit of exasperation and desperation. The rest of the team was counting on them to get out, figure out who was behind this, kick some ass, and save the day. If that meant she had to get naked with G Callen to do this, she was going to have to suck it up and put her big girl agent pants on, or take them off in this case.

Callen heard the sound of her clothes hitting bank and took that as the cue to start swimming. They went with the stream in order to make faster time. Fifteen minutes into their trip the last faint sound of dogs was finally lost. Twenty-three minutes into their swim the skies had open up. Forty-one minutes into the swim they both stopped as neither of them could ignore the sounds of Kensi's chattering teeth or the shakes that were racking both of their bodies. Plus, he knew neither of them had received more than a smattering of sleep in the last few days.

"We have to stop," Callen stated the obvious to save Kensi face, as he was freezing too.

Not turning to face each other out of respect, Kensi asked the inevitable question over her shoulder.

"Where are we going to find some clothes?"

It was going to be another long day, G. Callen felt it in his bones.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: So, I never thought I would finish. So many things got in the way personally, but I'm all healthy and decided to just finish it. Sorry for the loooooong wait. I never thought it would happen! Also, thank you to Loopylou for her excellent betaing and everyone who read. I tightened up some of the previous chapters too to make it not too AU.

When Henrietta Lange opened her eyes, she saw bleary shapes in front of her. She stopped for a brief moment to consider whether she had died, but the aching pain in her abdomen was the only reminder necessary to remind her that she was indeed alive. Before she could work out where she was and how to save her agents, the second thought that occurred to her upon regaining consciousness came from a chilling voice that reached her through the pain and drug induced haze.

"I have four of them, Hetty. Four of them. When I first heard of you, the words 'elite, professional, and best' were bandied about so cavalierly. Then I met them. An uncontrollable agent that's been passed around through every ABC agency. An ex-SEAL with anger problems. An orphan girl you pulled out of the desert. A law school drop out who is LAPD's most hated. An operational tech with authority issues. An operational psychologist that no one respects. I have seen your team, Henrietta. They are so compromised it is not even funny. They best are holding on for dear life.

The taunt meant to scare and intimidate had the opposite effect. Two of her agents were alive. Anyone of them alone could have saved the team's honor, but leaving two unaccounted for secured this man would not live to see the sunset.

She flashed a rueful smile and let her mind drift to the team she skillfully constructed as a way to ignore this traitor's presence and the unbelievable pain.

Eric, the team's innocent had required a good deal of breaking in. Coming from a strict and wealthy family, the young man did in fact have authority issues and decided to give up trust funds the day he turned eighteen for a full scholarship to Caltech and a full time job at the campus café. That and killer waves ensured that the Oregon native made the perfect choice. He had come into his own and was starting to find a voice amongst his colleagues. His lack of style and professionalism she chose to overlook based on his skills and dedication to his team. Eric added a touch of innocence that the team needed.

Kensi Blye. The team's youngest and toughest member and one of the most damaged. Only Callen had her beaten in the aspect. She had found Ms. Blye in a South American jungle bleeding to death in a ramshackle building. The barely twenty-three year old may have been bleeding to death but she had expertly taken out everyone else in the room. Kensi had not belonged to any legal or recognizable agency and had refused to say where she came from, but the older woman knew. The fact this younger woman refused a hand in getting off the floor despite bleeding to death confirmed Hetty's assessment. When the older woman remarked on the mess that the young lady had gotten herself into, the response was, "at least I die last." The spunk in the mismatched brown eyes was all she needed and once the brunette recovered she found herself a home in OSP where her loyalty, firm morality, and feminine touch were sorely needed

She had found Sam a year before he actually joined the team. He and his team had saved an arrogant G Callen. The man was team oriented and the way he chewed into the blond amused Hetty. This burly ex-SEAL had gotten under Callen's skin, something that rarely happened. Being a SEAL his training was incomparable and he had experience in the Middle East, a place she knew her team would need intimate knowledge of in the future. He still had time left in his tour but the day he returned to American soil, Hetty was there with promises of honor, team, and country. The look on her blond agent's face when Sam Hanna walked into OPS was one she had immortalized in a still shot she kept hidden in her desk. He provided the mothering and care this team and in particularly Callen needed.

Deeks was her newest acquisition. He was not even aware of this; none of them was except for Mr. Callen. He had known her intentions from the outset, which ultimately explained why the young officer was in the mess. Yet, if he was willing to protect this team without knowing them, then her instincts had been right. This man had a past as troubled as the rest of them and was a rogue in LAPD, which fit her purposes perfectly. His façade of carefree demeanor needed a serious counterpart, and she had just the partner for him. Miss Blye could use a bit of humor and agitation in her life. Detective Marty Deeks would prove to be the yin to Kensi's yang.

Then there was G. Callen, by far the most infuriating member of her team, and the one who first broke her rule about getting close to agents. All of them had gotten under her skin and had found a permanent home in her heart, though she did her best to not let them know this, but Mr. Callen was different. His lack of name and connections made her feel almost maternal towards him. ALMOST. She knew better than any of them what this job could do to you and the nightmares it could leave you with. She was determined this young man save something of himself and retain something of a family. It was one of the reason's she gave him slack, and one of the reason's they were all in their current predicament.

Nate had been her original choice, even before she heard of a G Callen and his exploits in Jersey City. The young man had his MD in psychiatry and a doctorate in Industrial/Organizational psychology. She had met the young man after Agent Laura Macy had been forced to see a therapist after a brutal undercover mission with Agent Gibbs in Columbia. Laura was tough and had to be in this man's military. The fact that she had come back from Columbia with an obvious case of PTSD had worried Hetty. She liked the younger woman, she was sassy and reckless, not unlike a certain junior agent, and the last think Hetty wanted to see was this woman demoted or moved to a desk job. Director Sheppard was not her biggest fan and thought the blond had issues with authority. When Hetty forced her into therapy, she was surprised to notice a change in the woman's demeanor after only three sessions. She brought Nate Getz in and saw why he was successful. His height induced clumsiness, kindness, and "nerdiness" made him an unassuming threat. The fact that he genuinely cared about the people around him made him her first conquest in building the perfect team.

All she needed was a partner for Eric and her team would be perfect and she already had the perfect little sprite in mind.

Before giving into the unconsciousness, she smiled at her adversary.

"Leon, the only regret I have is that I will not see them end your life."

While Hetty drifted back into unconsciousness Thelma and Louise found themselves in separate interrogation rooms in an undisclosed location. As soon as Eric and Marty stepped out of the car with their hands in the air, bombarded by LAPD police officers bombarded them. Not good. Deeks was not their favorite person and he knew they would love to get his hands on them

"Don't break man. I'll get you out of here as soon as I can. Be strong."

Eric only had a chance to nod before both men received a fist to the solar plexus.

The big burly man badly in need of a shave, and the type that was probably covered in gross back hair, seemed to be in charge. In spite of his large girth, he seemed to swagger over to the blonds.

"You fucking traitors. I hate you surfer types. Lazy. Disobedient. Unkempt. Unprofessional. How did some lazy assholes like yourselves become turncoats? You two were too pussy defend your country so you decide to try to destroy it? I cannot wait to watch you scream." Judging by his face it was going to be something he enjoyed. Marty Deeks had a vague notion of hearing of this guy. Corrupt and shady as hell and had a tendency to get rough with prisoners. It was said his confession rate was so high because he had a particular brand of torture he enjoyed administering.

"Hey, unkempt, unprofessional and disobedient I will give you. But, I would have to disagree on the lazy and pussy part. Actually I a…."

Deeks did not finish his diatribe as Hairy just placed a fierce kick to Eric in the groin bringing him to the floor. When Deeks went to fight back another office grabbed his handcuffed arms and forced him to the ground.

"Listen pussy, I would stop talking before your geeky girlfriend here gets hurt, well hurt more than he already is."

That had been six hours ago. He currently was sitting in an interrogation room by himself. He was pretty sure Eric was next door. As an LAPD officer he knew the tricks. They were trying to sweat the answers out of him but they had not enjoyed his answers. He had spent two of the six hours answering, or failing to answer, questions about Kensi and Sam and why they would blow up Camp Pendleton. He stopped answering once he realized he could say anything and they wouldn't care unless he gave up their whereabouts. After that, they had left him and he had been alone for the last four hours.

Next door, the hairy ringleader was questioning Eric. Hairy thought he had the young intelligence analyst by the balls as the younger man was stuttering and sweating profusely and even crying at times.

"Where is the whore?"

"She's not a whore and she did not shoot Renko in cold blood and she did not blow up Pendleton."

"Where is the bitch? Why are you defending her? Is it worth your life? Does she give that good of a blowjob?"

Eric did something quite un-Eric like, he spat in Hairy's face. The fat man only laughed before pulling a gun towards Eric's head.

"Son, I don't think you understand this. I can kill you and your girlfriend over there and no one will care. I'll say it was self-defense and no one would know the difference. No one cares about two traitors. If you leave here alive it will only be to parade you in front of a military tribune to formally charge you with treason so the public can watch you fry. The only chance you have is to give up the bitch and the…."

He was pretty sure Hairy had just used another racial slur to refer to Sam but he was done. What Hairy did not know was that Nate and G had spent a good deal of time working with the tech analyst on what to do if ever captured and tortured. Hetty had insisted that Eric could be used as leverage against them and he be prepared for that possibility. He now implemented what Nate had taught him and he disassociated himself from the situation and turned his mind off. Hairy went to speak to him but he did not respond and just stared at him with blank eyes.

Hairy screamed in his ears saying all sorts of foul and disgusting things about Kensi and what he was going to do to her when he found her and how they were going to hang Sam, but Eric had turned himself off. Hairy yelled in frustration and put his fist through a wall.

Next door Deeks smiled knowing that whatever was going on, Eric had the upper hand. He had to give it to the kid. While Fatty was bugging Eric, Deeks had come up with a plan; pretty sure he could get himself and Eric out of there.


	12. Chapter 12

While Eric and Deeks were under interrogation, Kensi and Callen were putting on their newly acquired clothing. Climbing out of the river had been a predicament. The sides had been steep and both still suffered body-racking shakes and needed to support each other up the embankment.

"Look, Kenz, we need to look at each other to get up this hill. So, let's just get this over with; we're both adults."

She had been silent for a moment while mulling her options before realizing they had both been injured during the last few days and would both need help getting up this incredibly steep terrain.

"Fine, but we never, ever speak about this again."

They both turned simultaneously taking in each other's wet, lithe forms.

G was surprised to see that Kensi's blush did not stop at her face but continued on and Kensi was surprised to see that G could blush, although neither had ANYTHING to be ashamed about.

After getting that moment out of the way, they used each other and vegetation to pull themselves up. The sight that greeted them was equally embarrassing; a local girl scout troop was getting an interesting lesson in human anatomy. For the second time in a few minutes, G Callen and Kensi Blye were blushing. Despite the humiliating situation and the fact they had to convince the girl scouts' mothers that they were nude as the result of a mean prank and the fact they were both wracked with shivers saved them from a trip to the police department, something they could not currently afford. The moms had rummaged their cars and both were now fully dressed and ready to depart.

"Well Ace, I think you are going to have to hotwire one of these minivans."

The sight of her superior had the junior agent in giggles. He only raised her eyebrow at her before responding.

"As your boss, I'm ordering you not to laugh."

Kensi just laughed harder and for good reason. G Callen, known for his masculine appearance of dark jeans and leather jackets, was currently wearing some extremely tight sweatpants with "Juicy" printed on the ass and a Jefferson High School Cheerleading Squad Sweatshirt.

"I'm sorry, G. You're just looking so," she paused for a second looking for the word, "juicy, in those sweats. They don't leave much to the imagination."

The double eyebrow raise reminded her that neither of them had left much to the imagination earlier. Then the situation hit her like a bullet to the brain. Nothing about this situation called for humor. They were in these clothes because they were being tracked after escaping a house where her friends were likely captured. She had been attacked and was wanted for treason. Most importantly and most devastatingly, she had killed her former partner Renko, and left his child an orphan. Kensi was not stupid; she heard the whispers and "black widow" rumors that swirled around her inability to keep a partner alive. Now Renko was dead by her own hand right after they lost Dom.

Callen saw the change in her demeanor. Despite the ribbing from Hetty, he did know his team. They were the closest thing to a family he had. With the exception of Sam, he may not have ever entered the homes of his team, but he knew where they all lived after trailing all of them home on a few occasions. He knew Eric's cozy apartment recently had a frequent redheaded visitor. Sam's yard often had two children's bikes in the yard. Since Dom died, Kensi did not swagger home most nights from the flavor of the week's house until almost 5am. She'd run in for shower and go for a run before ending up at OPS. Nate's house had a Dodgers flag hanging up in baseball season, a 49ers flag during football, and a Lakers flag during basketball seasons. This had prompted Callen to insist that he and Sam invite the psychologist on some of their frequent sports outing. Hetty had at least three homes. He did not even want to stop to consider the whys. Sensing Hetty's plans for the young LAPD detective, Callen had even done some reconnaissance at his place and found out that the young man was much too redundant in his routine, which would need to change if he were going to join the team permanently.

Staring at his junior agent and his favorite one, he felt the need to speak and try to relieve her of this tremendous sense of burden she carried with her.

"You know, I don't even think Atlas was carrying around as much weight as you are."

She glared at him.

"I'm serious. You're thinking the worst. We'll find a way out of this and I don't think you should write off the rest of the team. Hell, I think even Deeks could get us out of this."

This time she raised her eyebrows.

"Ok, let's go. I don't think we can leave that responsibility to Detective Deeks."

While Callen and Kensi were escaping in a minivan, Nate was helping Sam up after receiving a fierce kick to the head. Sam looked less than thrilled that the perpetrator of the entire mess was still standing there. He shook off Nate's hand and made to stand up only to see a gun trained on him.

"If you take one step, Agent Hanna I will not hesitate to blow your brains out."

"Be a man Vance, fight me like a man."

"That's still director to you, Agent Hanna. I was in the military too once. I know you are calculating how long it would take you to disarm me, but should you breathe out of turn I will have just enough time to end Dr. Getz' life. Nate over here does not deserve that, does he Agent Hanna?"

"I knew it was you."

The sudden sound of the third party momentarily surprised Vance. He hadn't expected the mild-mannered man to speak. Sam too was taken back, but not that Nate had spoken but that he did so with hatred and unadulterated anger in his voice.

"Dr. Getz, I spent years in the military's special ops. I know how to cover my tracks. How do you think you, a psychologist with zero undercover training, could have figured out I was framing you? You have my attention."

"It was Renko. I have done extensive psychological exams on every member of the team, including Renko. He's not a traitor. Whatever he was doing, it was to protect his daughter. He kept Allison a closely guarded secret for her safety. I never let the team know, but I did know about her. After the girl's mother died of cancer, he changed her last name and put her in a protected location. Mike knew that he was away quite a bit and living his kind of career makes enemies. Kensi was his partner and didn't even know he had a daughter. We know the leak was definitely an inside job. That leaves two people in NCIS to know about his daughter. You and Hetty. I know Hetty so that left you."

"Congratulation, Dr. Getz. You knew it was me. But as I see it, I still win."

"What made you do it?"

"That's Director Vance to you Agent Hanna, or former agent Hanna. This is not a movie where the bad guy confesses and repents. Good and bad are relative."

"You shot Hetty, you killed Renko, bombed Pendleton. Don't we get a why?"

"No."

With that final assertion, Vance flashed the two men a cold smile before waling out the door.

"We're screwed."

"I wouldn't be so sure," the operational psychologist responded looking Sam in the eye and moving closer so their conversation would not be overheard. The former SEAL flashed the younger man a glance making his lack of confidence known.

"Think about it. What did he come in here for? He didn't want information, he wanted to gloat but he never mentioned any of the others. He needed to see us captured to reaffirm his power. He should be confident but he's not. Why?"

"But we know Hetty was shot."

"Yeah, but any of the others could have gotten away. He came in here because he needed reassurance and confirmation. He didn't rub any deaths in our face so I think that's a good sign. Why not ask questions? "

"Well, I'm not so sure I want to put our lives in Deeks' delicate hands, but I hope Callen or Kensi got away."

While Sam doubted Deeks, the said detective was planning a breakout while Eric vehemently protested the entire situation.

"No way! They're my friends."

"I get that, man, but this is not real you know. It's a fake confession with emphasis on the fake."

"How does a betrayal of my friends, even a fake one, get us out?"

"Make some demands. Tell them Kensi was the manipulator and you'll say anything you want as long as they let you talk to Nate."

"Why Nate?"

"He's the perfect person. I'm pretty sure I saw him being taken away so we know he's somewhere. Say he has been doing his own investigation into these matters and you just need his confirmation it was Kensi. Say you're having a bad day and want to talk to your psychologist, hell Eric, say he's boyfriend, just get them to move us. Once we're on the road we can get out of here but we have to get out of here first."

The younger man did not particularly relish this idea, but it was a chance at escape and one that they quickly had the opportunity to enact as the sound of heavy footsteps started towards them. With that, Deeks proved his undercover abilities by throwing himself to the other side of the room and glaring at the younger man. Eric, to his credit, played his part well as Hairy walked into the room.

"Well, since no one seems to be tal…"

The corrupt officer never had a chance to finish his statement as Eric threw his body at the man's feet and broke down in tears, which were not hard to fake as he began to think of his friends and all they suffered.

"Don't you fucking dare, Eric," the LAPD officer spat out with so much vehemence it scared the younger man. But hell, if the team's tech was channeling hurt and fear then Marty Deeks would use anger and betrayal as the motivation for his Oscar worthy performance.

As Marty Deeks watched the glee and sadism flash across his fellow police officer's face, he began to catalog the ways in which he would love to ruin this man's career and life and prayed he had the opportunity.

"Shut up," came the warning from the officer but they had to make it look convincing.

"Eric, she's our friend. Don't you dare. She'd die for you."

The punch to the face dropping him to the floor was unexpected but the repeated kicks to the solar plexus were not. He and Eric were handcuffed and obviously not a threat but this man was thoroughly enjoying dishing out the punishment.

"Detective Deeks, I believe I told you to shut the fuck up," with the air taken from him, fulfilling this request was not an issue. Turning to the team's most innocent member the ugly man continued, "Mr. Beale, you had something to say?"

"She did it. She orchestrated the whole thing. "

"Who," the fat police officer questioned unable to hide his excited expectation. If he could crack this case and get the affirmation this would propel his stagnant career forward. He would be a shoe in for a promotion.

"I'll confess everything. I'll tell you how she did it; I just need to you to take us to Nate, Dr. Getz."

"Us?"

"Me and Marty."

"Why is that, kid," all hint of the insults he had been using to try and emasculate the young man ceased in a bid to try and build a connection."

"Well, he's my friend," Eric stuttered blushing and looking downwards

Deeks was still rolling on the floor but in his head he was not sure where this conversation was headed but looking at the determination in his friend's eye—after all they had been through, he figured they were all bonded somehow—he knew this kid would succeed.

"He seems pretty pissed at you. What's your deal? Why do you want him to go with you?"

"I told you we were friends," and with the words friends, Eric made sure to blush even more profusely.

"What kind of friends?"

His blush deepened.

"Ah, you're fuck friends. I didn't know the rat cop had it in him. I can see it; he is a pretty boy. So, I bring your boyfriend along, why do you need to talk to Dr. Getz."

"He's the one who figured out what she was up to and was trying to stop her. He can prove the rest of us had nothing to do with this, that we were all being set-up. He can prove it!"

The desperation in his voice was just enough and the hairy police officer was convinced. Deeks was impressed with the fact that Eric purposefully avoided saying Kensi's name. If they were being taped nothing could be used against them considering this was a military matter and not a civilian matter, he didn't know what the rules were regarding evidence and confessions. Eric had never said Kensi's name and thus never implicated the young woman. He had underestimated the blond, but he was doing a damn good job. When this was all over and they had made it out of this mess safely, and they would make it out safely, he was going to buy his fellow surfer the most expensive steak dinner in L.A. Then he would kill him, as no one would ever let the sexuality question drop, his hair was way too perfect.

Hairy, as they not so kindly but aptly dubbed the police officer, had a tough choice to make. He should call ahead to NCIS and let them know he was bringing the two men over, but if any of his colleagues got word, they could maneuver it so they were the ones to deliver the traitors and he had a feeling they would also take the credit. He needed this. He had a wife and four kids to take care of, and more importantly, he deserved it. He would take them and the credit for himself. He ordered the two handcuffed men up and walked them out of the station. When his colleagues asked where he was going he just said replied that since they weren't talking NCIS wanted their shot at interrogation. A believable lie.

He loaded them into the car with Eric still whimpering and Deeks still glaring. All was perfect. That is all was perfect until Deeks decided to pull his weight on Team Blond. It was a stupid team name but he was improvising and the past few days had been them improvising. This whole escape plan was by the seat of the pants so he was both surprised and excited when the officer decided to take them out solo. He had not been prepared for such an amazing opportunity, this would be much easier than he had intended. With that said Marty Deeks began making heaving sounds as if he was about to vomit, which wasn't hard since he had been kicked in the stomach one too many times today.

"Hey faggot, don't you dare think of throwing up in my car." Oh that's it, this guy was going down.

His partner in crime played the part well by making his eyes go wide, "Something's going on!"

With that, Eric grabbed Marty's shoulders and feigned panic as his friend and pretend lover forced himself to throw up and began convulsing and feigning a seizure.

"Shit. I just got this car washed you fucker!"

Office Hairy pulled over and opened the door thinking he was going to lay the "seizing" man on the ground. Instead, as he was wrestling Deeks out of the car intending to make sure he had a clear airway—it would not help his chance of a promotion if one of the traitors died because he beat him—he received Eric launching his lithe form at him as Deeks kicked him in the balls. The hairy office instantly grabbed his crotch and Eric took the opportunity to head-butt him. Looking for revenge for himself, his friends, and just out of fear, the LAPD liaison kicked the big man in the solar plexus, the same brutal kicks he received, until the man passed out. They quickly searched his rotund body and found the keys to the cuff, freeing themselves and making sure to tie up the officer so he had no chance of escaping in the near future.

"Dude, I'm going to teach you to fight, you fight like a chick."

"Kensi is a girl and she fights pretty good."

"Yeah, but she's the bionic woman. So sweetheart, how are we going to get out of this predicament?"

"I'm sorry, you said get us out and it was the first thing that came to mind," he did look contrite at having made the LAPD detective his boyfriend.

"Where the hell do we go from here?"

"I need a cellphone. We have emergency procedures. I log onto our facebook page and put out a distress signal. If anyone else has escaped and was able to get internet access we'll be able to let them know we're ok and we can meet up."

"Seriously? Facebook? That's the best your superhero team could come up with?" As their conversation was going on, Eric was already accessing Hairy's smartphone while Deeks just started driving. They'd have some time before anyone figured out what happened and came searching for them and they would definitely need to find a new ride by then.

"Yup. Everyone uses it so no one would think that would be our communication method. It's hiding in front of their noses."

"Does everyone know this procedure?"

"Nope, this was Hetty's personal communication method. Just the team, not even the Director knows it." Eric's eyes grew wide, "Callen and Kensi are safe too. They're in Santa Monica!"

Deeks hit the steering wheel in a bout of excitement. They had a chance. Eric had tears in his eyes knowing that at least of two his friends were safe.


	13. Chapter 13

As the two men began their drive to Santa Monica Callen and Kensi were sitting on the beach of Santa Monica in big hats and sunglasses looking like tourists rather than terrorists. Thankfully, in order not to ruin any ongoing or past cases, their faces were kept from the media. It was the one blessing in this entire situation. They'd found more acceptable clothes and were now hiding in plain sight waiting for Deeks and Eric. Callen could not wait to hear how the two had escaped. Once he and Kensi had taken off in the mini van, they had put on the news on in the car and heard how four of the suspected terrorists were captured and quickly realized that Sam and Nate were in NCIS' custody while the police had Eric and Deeks. How the two of them escaped was beyond him but he was glad they did. They needed to figure out who was beyond this so they could end this and clear their names.

Callen was quickly pulled out of his reveries by a tap on the shoulder from Kensi. Walking towards them were an almost unrecognizable Dees and Eric in baseball hats and large sunglasses. He could feel Kensi tense and he had to put a restraining hand on her shoulder to keep her from running to the two men. They could not afford to make a scene. Taking a cue from Callen, their liaison had to keep Eric from hugging the stuffing out of the agents. It was clear to everyone they were happy to see one another. Even Callen allowed the gratefulness to shine through for a moment and even offered words of praise.

"Good job."

Simple and concise, but both men knew that it was not something he said lightly or often and took it to heart.

"How'd you gu…," before Eric could finish, Callen silenced him. "Start walking. Act normal. Don't look nervous and don't make eye contact. Smile, we're just a couple of friends walking in Santa Monica."

With that said, he threw his arm over Kensi possessively and started walking the pier. In a place like Santa Monica with individuals covered head-to-toe in piercings or tattoos, half-dressed women, and every color hair possible, the four blended in.

"Right now we need to figure out who did this." As soon as his words left his mouth, he felt Kensi tense beneath him.

"Kenz, you want to share something with the class?"

"I don't think it could even be true."

"What couldn't be true? Come on Fern, any idea is better than no idea."

"Well, I know Mike. He was my partner. He's not the man who showed up at my house and tried to kill me and he hesitated, for a second he hesitated."

"Kensi, of course he'd hesitate, he was your partner and somewhere he still cared about you."

She smiled at Eric realizing he thought she doubted herself, even in chaos you could count on Eric.

"No, I'm saying we know this had to be internal. Who else knew where I live or where our safe house was? It has to be someone big for Mike to turn on us. He was my partner. I knew him and he wouldn't do this without a good reason. Not even I knew he had an idea he had a daughter, that means it had to be someone high up."

"I'm personally going to kill the bastard."

All eyes were now on Eric not just because of the meaning of his words but also the force of which the team's pacifist said them.

"You know something we don't?"

"No but whoever the hell it is, I want to kill him."

"Or her," Kensi threw in.

"I don't know why he, or she, would do it. I'm more concerned with clearing our names and finding Sam, Hetty, and Nate."

Callen's words shut everyone up. They all had seen Hetty shot and no one knew what had happened to Sam and Nate. They'd avoided the subject because there was nothing they could do at the moment, not until they cleared their names. The fate of their friend hung heavy in their minds.

Kensi broke the silence. In addition to her family, she needed to make sure Renko's daughter was safe.

"Ok, well, let's make a plan. If we are going to get out of this, we'll need some help."

She shot G a look and she knew exactly who she meant. There was only one person they could trust with this.

G picked up his phone and made a call. He had just about lost hope that the recipient would pick up when he heard the smooth voice on the other end.

"Hello."

"Director Vance, it's Agent Callen. Before you speak and trace the call I need to assure you that we are innocent.

"Agent Callen, are you alright?"

"I'm fine. But we have all been set up and we need your help."

"Agent Callen, I assure you that I have never doubted your innocence or any of your innocence for that matter. Is Agent Blye with you?"

"I have Kensi, Eric, and Detective Deeks with me. We're all safe. Director, they shot Hetty. Do you know where she and Sam and Nate are?"

"Hetty is in ICU but she's still alive. I have Agent Hanna and Dr. Getz in NCIS custody until we can figure this out and we will figure this out."

"Where are you, I can send someone to pick you up."

"No, Director. There is a leak in NCIS. We need to meet you personally. I think we know who it is but until we can prove it, we need to take precautions. They're trying to kill us. I'll give you a location where you can meet us. Director, thank you for believing us."

"Mr. Callen, I know for a fact you could not have done this."

With that, Callen gave him the directions. Vance could not be more pleased. He would have the remaining four in a few jours. It sounded like they bought his lie and would blame the whole thing on Agent Renko. A part of him felt bad for the way things turned out. He had only intended on killing Miss Blye and then an "official investigation" would lay the blame on Agent Renko. Miss Blye was a terrific agent, but NCIS needed an overhaul and given the nature of her father's death, she seemed the logical choice to kill; he could kill two birds with one stone.

They were at war and this country's government behaved far too cavalierly regarding the defense and protection of America. They had cut his budget by many millions. This country needed more defense and the Washington bureaucrats kept throwing money at schools and the arts and helping rid AIDS overseas. This country would not survive with its current attitude, and it certainly would not remain a Superpower. Unfortunately, he had not counted on Agent Blye escaping. Then everything had to be improvised, but he was ready. As a former Black Ops, this was the most alive he felt in years and he thrived on the improvisation. He had hoped catching Renko as a spy would bring attention to the fact that they needed stronger rules and regulations in NCIS and better training. Individuals like Abby Sciuto and Eric Beale should not have even received an interview but Director Sheppard and the Defense cared more about results than decorum and integrity. Although as Leon thought on it, it had worked to his advantage. The bombing of Pendleton was improvised, a Plan B, but it had worked beautifully. On the news they were already calling for a complete overhaul of the defense system and how this was a result of recent budget cuts. He could lose his job, but Director Vance would accept that as long as his country was safe. Sometimes you sacrifice the few for the many. He was not an exception.

Leon Vance picked up the phone and alerted the Secretary of Defense that he just spoken with the traitors and NCIS would prepare to make the capture. The alleged homegrown terrorists would be delivered this evening.

While Vance was pontificating about his success, the remaining team members were getting themselves into place for what they hoped would be there redemption.

When Leon Vance walked into the warehouse they were set to meet at, he was expecting Callen to have a backup plan just in case. He would have been disappointed had the young man not have a way out. No, G Callen was known for the being best agent regardless of the agency. Hell, the young man had been in every agency. He was the best. But Vance had him over a guardrail. It was a shame, because it was only Kensi and Mike he had planned to destroy and now he had to take down his best team. Regardless of the lies he told Henrietta, they were the best, but everyone is replaceable, including the man in front of him.

"Agent Callen, where is Miss Blye, Mr. Beale, and Detective Deeks."

"We're here," came the seething reply of the brunette.

Kensi appeared holding a semi-automatic weapon looking every bit as beautiful as she did lethal, behind her was the shaggy-haired detective packing just as much weaponry and Eric was nowhere to be seen.

"Why the guns. I'm here to help."

"Where is she?"

"Ms. Blye, I believe that is "where is she, sir," and I still do not know whom you are referring to."

"Allison Renko."

"Kensi…" their team leader's reprimand and warning had just enough forcefulness and command for her to back down.

"Mr. Callen, what is going on here?"

"You tell us? You set us up. You put Renko up to this."

"Mr. Callen. Do you think I would just confess to everything? You're delusional as I'm sure Eric is somewhere nearby taping these proceedings."

"I didn't expect a confession, but frankly, I don't need one."

"Why is that Mr. Callen?"

"Because Leon, you screwed up."

The unexpected voice began to startle NCIS' Director. He had not expected to see Gibbs and his team and yet here they were armed. He could not help letting Gibbs' name escape his lips.

"Callen called me and told me what was going on, asked for my help and I never say no to a good friend. When all of this began happening and her team's name started appearing in illicit operations, Hetty called and asked for my help. Abby and McGee did some research. McGee."

With his cue, the young man nervously looked at wondering how to proceed. This still was the Director.

"Any day, McGee."

Sensing the irritation coming from both of his boss', Tim started speaking.

"Ms. Lange was sure it was an inside job but that it wasn't any of you. With a friend's help, we hacked into their computers and phones and began monitoring Agent Callen and his team. Someone was hacking their computers. We were able to trace it to an Agent Renko but something seemed off. He was actually working a case with us when one of the alleged incidents happened. We started tracking Agent Renko but it became obvious he was not the source."

"Probie, get to the point,"

"Yeah, Tony Um, we did some research but weren't getting anywhere until everything blew up the last few days. Agent Renko had been in New York on a case when he got a call to return to Los Angeles. The call was from you."

"That's not proof, Agent McGee. You are making a career-ending allegation here."

"It's not proof, but a friend of mine from college is great hacker. She, Abby, and I were able to get into your phone. Each of the incidents was preceded by a call to Agent Renko from you. We did some further investigation and found large sums of money disappearing from NCIS and your personal Swiss bank accounts shortly before and after the incidents. It took a few days to untangle the money trail, but it was you."

To say that Vance looked pissed was an understatement. He had been so careful. He had created elaborate trails.

"The real damning evidence is in your phone."

"My phone."

"I bet that when Abby analyzes your phone, she'll find the phone signal that detonated the Pendleton Massacre originated from your phone before bouncing to Agent Hanna's."

"Why'd you do it, Leon?"

"Nothing is black and white, Jethro." Without confessing or acknowledging his crimes, Vance ran behind a huge shipping crate as NCIS, FBI, LAPD, Navy, and CIA, swat teams swarmed the buildings. Chaos ensued. Leon had brought NCIS and LAPD and Gibbs had informed the Defense Secretary and local authorities and came armed with Navy and FBI teams.

At some point, someone fired a shot that resulted in erupting chaos. The firefight could not have lasted more than a minute but in between volleying shots with a CIA operative, he saw Vance make a run for it. He wasn't the only one. Just as he aimed for the Director, he saw the man go down from a bullet straight to the head. G watched in slow motion as the Director of NCIS and the perpetrator of this mess fell to the ground his eyes open in shock staring somewhere behind him. He turned his head, saw Kensi administer, and realized that she administered the kill shot with a look of pure anger and revenge on her face. As he watched Kensi stare at what she'd done, he had been opening to spare this pain. While she more than anyone had the right to pull the trigger, she just left two more children without a father and that would undoubtedly keep her awake for many nights to come. Time went from slow motion to fast forward as he saw someone come up behind his agent and take aim at her head before pulling the trigger He yelled her name and threw himself on top of her while simultaneously shooting the perp through his own head. Oblivious to the chaos around him he dropped to the ground beside her.

"Kenz, you ok?"

"Yeah, not sure you did much for my ribs, but I can tell you Sam's right."

Callen's only response was a questioning raising of eyebrows.

"You really need to lay off the bacon."

He uncharacteristically blushed as he realized he was still on top of her and pulled himself off while offering a hand up. As they stood, they realized the shooting had stopped though chaos still reigned as every agency attempted to make sense of what occurred. Agent Gibbs who also offered the female agent a cursory glance to ensure she was unharmed quickly joined them.

Gibbs cleared his throat to pull the younger man's attention away from his female colleague. With a start they both turned their attention to the man in front of them and realized Gibbs' capable team was orchestrating the clean up and getting the injured medical attention.

"It looks like we have quite a few injured. Four people were shot and wounded, five including Kensi, and none of the wounds should be fatal. Director Vance is the only fatality and with so many shots fired it will be impossible to figure out who killed him," Gibbs added with a look to Kensi. "Dinozzo and Ziva are going to orchestrate the cleanup. Sam and Nate will be released into my custody. You will all need to be arrested as we sort this thing out but you'll be home soon."

"Hetty?" their senior agent asked worried about the petite woman who had wormed her way into his heart.

"She'll be fine. A long recovery, but she'll be good. She is being alerted that you are all safe and well."


	14. Chapter 14

It took a few days before the last of them, Kensi and Sam, were cleared and released. By that time they all had received medical attention and while still looking the worse for ware, they were all alive. It took mountains of paperwork, testimony, and the damning proof. McGee and Abby had been able to trace the original phone call that caused the Pendleton detonation back to Director Vance's phone. When Kensi and Sam were finally released they were greeted by many hugs from their friends. The papers had named Leon Vance as the perpetrator and they blamed it on mental instability and PTSD. Donations for PTSD and various charities for soldiers had increased fourfold in the last few days and more money was being thrown at defense, only defense at home. There was even talk of them receiving medals for service rendered to their country.

Without questioning it, Sam and Kensi were quickly taken to Hetty who was recovering nicely and had even been moved out of ICU.

She smiled as both agents gently bent to hug the petite woman.

"I believe a 'good job' is in order. To say I'm proud of all of you would be an understatement. Mr. Getz, I understand you figured it out."

"He did," Sam boasted with some pride. "Doc, we might just have to upgrade you to field agent. You're the only one who figured it out."

"Yeah, well…," since he could not finish, he just blushed and shrugged his shoulders and turned the attention to Eric and Deeks.

"I am not the one who escaped custody."

"Yeah, I hear that you two have something going on," Kensi teased a true smile gracing her face.

"How the hell did you know!"

"It's all the buzz at LAPD," she winked at him.

"You're just jealous, Fern."

Nate spoke this time.

"Kenz, how did you and G escape? He has not been forthcoming on the details."

Instead of responding she blushed and stuttered, she would have continued on this path but the amused looks from the man around her forced Hetty to speak up.

"Gentlemen, I believe Mr. Callen and Ms. Blye will bare their souls to us when they are ready. The point is we're all safe."

Instead of contemplating Hetty's choice of words, Kensi realized she didn't know if they were all safe.

"What about Mike's daughter?"

The silence around her was thick.

"Kensi, I'm sorry. One of the men helping Vance admitted that he had the girl killed soon after her abduction."

The look on the junior agent's face was crestfallen. "She never even stood a chance."

There was nothing anyone could say to comfort her as they were all equally angry at what happened. They stood in silence each letting the finality of the last few days settle in.

4 Months later…

Things had slowly gone back to normal. Deeks was now a permanent fixture in OPS as Kensi's new partner much to her chagrin, Sam's annoyance, and Callen's amusement. McGee's friend from college who had assisted the team, Nell Jones, had found a home on the team too, which was surprising considering Hetty's track record with intelligence analysts.

Nate had spent time with each of the team ensuring they were safe to work. Kensi had obviously required more of attention as she was well known for burying her feelings and acting as of everything was fine. Leaving three children without a parent had left her struggling to cope with her past and deal with her father's murder. Luckily, a new annoying partner forced her out of her head. Deeks had been good for her. The shaggy-haired detective had ruined his career at LAPD, that much was evident. It was to get anyone to even speak to him before Hetty reigned him back in. Deeks required more seriousness in his life Kensi Blye provided that. Sam had needed help regaining his balance. He had felt useless and unable to protect them during the goings on. He could not come to their rescue. Deeks had again proved valuable as Sam was able to refocus himself on training Deeks, sure the training was more goading, but it gave him an objective. Eric had lost an innocence, there was no denying that, but Nell would provide that. Putting Eric back with his computers gave him an objective and like Sam, he once again needed to feel as if he had a place and could help the others. True to his word, Deeks had trained Eric in fighting and the two became quick friends often catching waves together on early LA mornings. Callen's recovery had been a double-edged sword. He quickly let go of the events, although he would probably never let go of the image of a very naked and very beautiful junior agent, but he let them go in order to forge ahead in his quest to find out who he was.

Nate let all of these thoughts swirl through his head as he sat with the team eating garbage bar food, to Sam's disgust and Callen and Kensi's delight, and drinking beers. He let the conversations distract him from his serious thoughts.

"That's the best pick up line you have? Seriously, G, it's no wonder you're permanently single."

"Is this coming from one date Blye," Sam scoffed while Deeks and Eric just laughed their drunken heads off.

"Sam's right. Plus, I get plenty of women and I'm not the one who fell for the 'take a chance on me' line."

Nate watched intently for Kensi's reaction to Callen bringing up thoughts from the incidents of four months ago.

"That was a good line and he was handsome."

"I'm handsome."

"Your short," Sam laughed at his partner's expense. They all began laughing at their team leader's expense. Nate smiled. He was going to miss this. But he had his own demons to deal with. What happened four months ago proved to Nate that he was stronger than he believed and while happy to help his friends through their ordeals, he needed more for himself; he was antsy. Hetty sensed this and in a few days time he would be back in Afghanistan working undercover. He would miss his team but he needed to feel useful. He smiled to himself as the bickering and laughing continued. Nate would be back if they needed him, but he felt better leaving them in a good place moving forward rather than standing still.


End file.
